Bossier Press-Tribune Online

Everybody who has kept up with Bossier High’s basketball team this season knows the Bearkats are ranked No. 1 in Class 3A in recent Louisiana Sports Writers’ Association polls.
More important than that, however, Bossier High is also No. 1 in Louisiana High School Athletic Association Class 3A power rankings. That determines the Bearkats’ seeding position in the state playoffs.
As the No. 1 seed, the Bearkats will play host to the No. 32 seed in the opening round of state playoffs.
Based on LHSAA power ratings released last Tuesday, Bossier would play Vidalia. But last Friday’s results will likely alter the power ratings and the regular season doesn’t officially end until Wednesday.
Vidalia (9-14) has lost three of its last seven games to Avoyelles, 76-84, Marksville, 46-66 and Caldwell Parish, 65-64. Avoyelles is 16-13, Marksville is 20-6 and Caldwell Parish is 21-7.
Vidalia’s last two wins were an 84-70 decision over Avoyelles and a 71-69 squeaker past Buckeye (13-12).  
Vidalia’s only state championship in boys’ basketball was captured by the 1978-79 team, coached by Kenneth Simmons, which wrapped up a 32-4 season with a 49-42 victory over Varnado in the Class 2A title game. Bossier High won state championships in 1960 and 2011.
John McConathy coached the 1959-60 Bearkats, who set a Caddo-Bossier record for total wins that still stands with a 41-4 record, wrapping it up with a 39-35 win over DeLaSalle (New Orleans) in the Class 3A (then the top class) championship game
Cecil Upshaw and Dennis Kile were All-Staters on that Bearkat team.
Other than the two Bossier High teams, the only Bossier Parish teams that have won state championships in boys’ basketball were the 1967-68 and 1968-69 Haughton teams, coached by Billy Montgomery. Kenny Covington was the All-State Most Valuable Player on both of those teams, which won Class A titles with a 48-38 win over Gueydan in 1968 and a 75-69 victory over Oak Grove in 1969.
Benny DePrang joined Covington on the 1969 All-State team. Montgomery was selected Coach of the Year in 1968.
The first Bossier Parish team that reached the state finals in boys’ basketball was the 1948-49 team, coached by Frank Lampkin. That team, led by All-Staters Bobby Ray McHalffey and Tommy Woodall, ended a 28-12 season with a 46-27 loss to Many in the Class A championship game.
A Bossier High team coached by Chrfis White reached the Class 4A finals in 2005, but dropped a 64-40 decision to a Glen Oaks (Baton Rouge) team that posted a perfect 36-0 record.
None of the Bearkats were first-team selections on the 2005 All-State team, but White was voted Coach of the Year
In the 1962-63 season, Bossier High was one of three local teams that were considered the best three in the state, regardless of classification. Fair Park, coached by Clem Henderson, won the Class 3A state championship with a 56-49 victory over Lafayette. Byrd, coached by Scotty Robertson, had32-4 record, while Fair Park was 32-5 and Bossier, coached by George Nattin, was 29-7.

Jerry Byrd is the former sports editor of the Bossier Press-Tribune and an award-winning columnist. You can contact him by E-mail at  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it