Red Level’s basketball team is hoping for a big crowd tonight for the Class 2A sub regional against Flomaton.

The crowd can be as loud as it wants because Tigers guards Troy Nolen and KJ Lawrence said the noise won’t affect the team’s play.

“We don’t hear it. We’re used to it,” Nolen said on Wednesday.

RLS beat Elba 79-61 in the Class 2A, Area 2 championship game on Monday night, which for KJ Lawrence, was a good win leading to tonight’s game.

Lawrence said winning tonight would be huge for the team.

“It would be pretty big considering last year we got put out in the first round,” Lawrence said.

The Tigers sit at a 21-10 overall record going into the game, and will face an FHS team that has definitely changed since they played them the first time on Dec. 2. RLS won that match up 63-47.

“The game was early in the season,” RLS coach Allen Catrett said about the first meeting with the Hurricanes. “All teams change throughout the season, and so we’re expecting them to be better this time around than what they were the first time.”

Catrett said his team needs to rely on what has gotten them this far this season — defense.

“We’ve got to rely on our defense,” he said. “That’s the first thing. We’ve got to take care of the basketball, control the boards and make your shots.”

Lawrence and Nolen are on the same page when it comes to playing good defense against an FHS team that likes to take the ball inside.

“On transition, we have to take control of the ball,” Lawrence said. “And control the boards.”

When it’s said and done, playing in front of the home crowd one last time is all that matters, Catrett said.

“They put themselves in a good situation,” he said about the team. “Anytime you can host a game in the playoffs at home. You can’t ask for anything better than that.”