Families have united, presents opened and memories shared, all in time for the holidays.

However, don’t expect everyone to be in the holiday spirit when the four-team Selma High School Saints Holiday Tournament tips off tonight.

The tournament begins at 6 p.m. with Southside taking on Sidney Lanier. That game will be followed at 7:30 by Selma and Dallas County.

The tournament concludes Thursday night with the third-place game at 6, followed by the championship at 7:30.

One subplot heading into tonight’s games is the third meeting this season between Selma and the Dallas County Hornets. The teams have split the first two games, with each team winning at home.

The Hornets’ victory over the Saints last month was the second time in three years Dallas County had beaten its crosstown rival after failing to register a victory over the Saints in 18 previous seasons.

The tournament also marks the homecoming of Dallas County coach Bill Porter Jr.

Porter, a former assistant under current Selma High coach Willie Maxey Jr., forecast a tough-physical game tonight.

“It’s going to be a good, old-fashioned slugfest,” Porter said of the Hornets-Saints matchup. “Their guys know our guys and our guys know their guys. It’s going to be a grudge match.”

After losing three of their first four, the Hornets are 6-5 headed into tonight’s game. Even though his team has played well in recent weeks, Porter said Southside is the team to beat in the tournament.

“They’re 13-0 and the number one team in the state in Class 4A,” he said. “They have to be the favorite to win.

“I’m not really concerned about winning the tournament,” Porter added. “I’m just taking it a game at a time.”

Along with his coaching experience, Porter also has played in the Selma tournament as a member of the Hornets during the 1988-89 and 1989-90 seasons.

“It’s always nice when you have a chance to come back to Selma High and coach,” he said. “I always enjoy coming back to Selma High.”