By Robert Wilson
East Rankin Academy girls basketball coach Brooke Rhodes has the school record for points with 2,568 during her high school career from 2007-2010.
If her standout player, 6-foot-2 junior forward Liz Stevens, keeps having weeks like last week, Rhodes will be in second place at some point next season.
Stevens averaged 25 points, 12.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocked shots in three tournament games and led East Rankin to the MAIS North Class 4A state championship last week at Pillow Academy in Greenwood.
For her outstanding performance, Stevens has been named the Legacy Theaters Flowood/Mississippi Scoreboard Metro Jackson Girls Basketball Player of the Week.
Stevens finished with week with 32 points (12 of 14 shots from the field, 2 for 2 from 3-point range and 6 of 7 from the free throw line), 14 rebounds, 4 blocked shots and 2 assists in an 85-56 victory over host Pillow in the championship game. She also had 29 points, 13 rebounds and 2 blocked shots in a 74-46 victory over Bayou Academy in the quarterfinals and 14 points, 10 rebounds and 1 blocked shot in a 53-36 victory over Jackson Academy in the semifinals.
Stevens scored her 2,000th point during the Bayou game last week. She might get 200 more points before this season ends.
Stevens is averaging 23.1 points, 12.2 rebounds, and 2.5 blocked shots this season and led East Rankin to a 28-5 record, winners of 14 of the last 15 games, and a No. 14 ranking in Mississippi and No. 3 ranking among MAIS Class 4A teams by MaxPreps going into this week.
She has averaged 24.7 points and 13.7 rebounds over the past six games. She had a career-high 24 rebounds against Hartfield Academy Jan. 20 and seven blocked shots against Starkville Academy Jan. 23. She scored a career-high 38 points against Madison St. Joseph earlier this season.
“Liz is so fun to coach,” said Rhodes, who is in her fifth season as head coach at her alma mater after being an assistant college coach for six seasons. “Her growth as a player has been so excited to see. She has taken on a lot of responsibility for our team and she handles it with such grace and takes hard coaching all the time. Liz is one of the best teammates and so unselfish and is more worried about how our team does then how she does. She has great teammates that look for her and are always excited for her accomplishments. Last week, she had a big week with her 2,000th point against Bayou and her big performance against Pillow and I hope Liz continues to play with that confidence.”
Stevens has offers from Southern Miss, Appalachian State, Mississippi College and William Carey.
Stevens averaged 16.1 points, 12.1 rebounds, and 2.1 blocked shots and helped East Rankin to a 36-3 record, the MAIS Class 5A state championship and the Overall Tournament first round appearance last year as a sophomore. She was a member of the Tatum and Wade/Mississippi Scoreboard Metro Jackson second team last season.
Stevens is the daughter of Courtney and Andy Stevens. Courtney was an All-American cheerleader at Magee High and Jones County Junior College and received a nursing degree from Mississippi College. Andy played baseball, basketball, and football at Puckett High and baseball at Madison-Ridgeland Academy, Hinds Community College and Mississippi State and works in insurance and owns a cattle farm. Stevens has two siblings. Sister Abigail played basketball and softball at East Rankin and is a sophomore on MSU’s softball team this year. Brother Andrew is a sophomore at East Rankin and plays basketball and on the sporting clays team. Stevens’ great uncle, Lennis, played football at MSU and was the football coach at Puckett High from 1972-2003.
East Rankin plays defending MAIS Overall Tournament champion Parklane Academy Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. in the Class 4A, Division I semifinals at the state tournament at Jackson Prep in Flowood.
Mississippi Scoreboard selects a girls basketball player from Hinds, Madison, or Rankin counties each week. Coaches can nominate a player by sending a text to Robert Wilson at 601.506.2276.
PREVIOUS PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
WEEK ONE: Liz Stevens, East Rankin Academy
WEEK TWO: Ella Jackson, Hartfield Academy
WEEK THREE: Ayla Benson, Madison Central
WEEK FOUR: Shamira Morton, Canton
WEEK FIVE: Laylah Johnson, Pisgah
WEEK SIX: Alayah Bolden, Madison Central
WEEK SEVEN: Shamira Morton, Canton
WEEK EIGHT: Karley Robinson, Madison Central
