By Robert Wilson
Northwest Rankin girls basketball coach Tameika Brown won her 400th career game and kept her undefeated record against Rankin County rival Brandon Tuesday night.
And she can thank 5-foot-9 senior forward Jordyn Crumedy for a big reason for getting the milestone victory and another win over a rival team.
Crumedy had a team-high 19 points, 15 in the second half, and five steals and led Northwest Rankin to a 53-40 victory in a MHSAA Class 7A, Region 3 game in a battle between two of the Top 12 ranked teams in Mississippi before an estimated 800 at Northwest Rankin’s gym in Brandon.
Northwest Rankin – ranked No. 12 in Mississippi by No. 6 in MHSAA Class 7A by MaxPreps – improved to 14-7 overall and 3-1 in region play.
Brandon – ranked No. 7 in Mississippi and No. 4 in MHSAA Class 7A – dropped to 18-5 overall and 5-1 in region play. The Lady Bulldogs had 12 of their last 13 games, including the last six games, before Tuesday night.
Brown, who played at Yazoo City High (for legendary coach Archie Carlyle) and Jackson State (she’s a member of the JSU Hall of Fame), won her 400th career game in her 24th season as a head coach, two at Northwest Rankin, seven at Madison Central, 11 at Velma Jackson and four at Yazoo City.
Brown has three starters (junior guard Malia McCelleis, senior guard Hannah Jones and Crumedy) from last year’s team, which finished 22-6 and lost to eventual champion Tupelo 62-61 in the Class 7A semifinals.
Brown – who has a 4-0 record against Brandon (3-0 last year and Tuesday’s win) since arriving at Northwest Rankin – wants to her team back on deep playoff run and playing like Tuesday night will help get them there. She is trying to win the first state championship in girls basketball at Northwest Rankin since 2011 when coach Angela Reynolds and star player Taylor Beverly led the Lady Cougars to winning a gold ball.
“I feel like we did a good job of playing to our strengths,” Brown said. “Our team did a good job of playing together and executing on offense. We also defending well tonight. Jordyn did a good job of running the floor, which translated into points for us. She was able to get several easy buckets.”
“We were successful tonight because we played as a team and we wanted it more than Brandon,” Crumedy said. “We put in the work for that moment to get the win over Brandon. All I’ve been doing is working hard to get better. It’s the grind, the heart, and the want to for the sport I love. I worked on my game to get it to where it is now. I’m still working to improve every day. I’ve focused on being more of a leader on the team, stepping up, being more vocal on the floor. The grind isn’t over yet. I’m always working to get better in any way possible.”
In addition to Crumedy’s contribution to the win, McCelleis – a member of the Tatum and Wade/Mississippi Scoreboard Preseason Metro Jackson Elite 11 Team – had 14 points and Jones had eight points. Jaida Bennett, a 6-foot junior forward, had a team-high seven rebounds.
Brandon was led by 5-11 senior forward Karissa’s Baker with 19 points.
“We just didn’t play our game and Northwest came out hot,” said Brandon coach Holly Moncrief, who won her 300th career game in 13 seasons Dec. 29 with a win defending MAIS Overall Tournament champion Parklane Academy in the Community Bank/Mississippi Scoreboard Christmas Classic at Jackson Prep.
