By Robert Wilson
MADISON – In a battle between not only two of the top girls basketball teams in the Metro Jackson area, but also in Mississippi, the game was so close it wasn’t decided until a four-minute overtime period.
Madison Central rallied from a 12-point deficit in the third quarter, hit a 3-pointer with 1 second to play in regulation then held Northwest Rankin scoreless in overtime until the final seconds to take a 64-57 victory in non-region MHSAA Class 7A game Saturday afternoon before an estimated 500 at Madison Central.
Madison Central improved to 7-0, its best start since winning the first 11 games during the 2020-2021 season when the Lady Jags finished 21-3 and reached the MHSAA Class 6A quarterfinals.
Northwest Rankin dropped to 4-2 and lost its second straight game after losing to defending MHSAA Class 3A state champion Booneville 59-56 Monday at Booneville.
This was also the second meeting between coaches Jalessa Taylor of Madison Central and Tameika Brown of Northwest Rankin since they swapped schools two years ago. They played each other for the first time at their new schools last season with Northwest Rankin winning 71-69 at Northwest Rankin. This was the first time Brown had coached at her old school.
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), had a 114-90 record in seven seasons at Madison Central. Her best record was in 2020-2021 when she went 21-3 and reached the MHSAA Class 6A state quarterfinals. She has also coached for four years at Yazoo City and 11 years at Velma Jackson. Brown has 388 career wins.
Taylor, who played at Jackson Academy (set a school record for most points in a career) and Mississippi College (was an all-conference player), had a 67-49 record in four seasons at Northwest Rankin. She also was a graduate assistant for one year and an assistant coach for six years at Mississippi College before coming to Northwest Rankin.
The two coaches has many talented players on their respective teams, including four of the players on the Tatum & Wade/Mississippi Scoreboard Preseason Metro Jackson Elite 11 Team, three on Madison Central and one on Northwest Rankin.
Ayla Benson, a 5-foot-8 senior who transferred from Germantown and is one of the three Elite 11 members on Madison Central, had a team-high 15 points, including three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, all from the left corner, including a 22-footer that swished the net with 1 second to play for a 55-55 tie to send the game into overtime.
Alalyiah Morris, a 5-7 senior, and Karley Robinson, a 5-6 sophomore, – the other two members of the Elite 11 team on Madison Central – added 12 points each. Alayah Bolden, a 5-11 junior, and Alonna McCruther, a 5-9 senior, had 10 points each.
Malia McCelleis, a 5-4 junior and Northwest Rankin’s Elite 11 member, had a team-high 17 points, 10 in the second half. Hannah Jones, a 5-7 senior, had 16 points, Jordyn Crumedy, a 5-9 senior, had 12 points and Jaida Bennett, a 6-foot junior, had 10 points.
Madison Central led 13-10 after one quarter, Northwest Rankin led 29-23 at halftime and 41-40 after three quarters.
Madison Central jumped out to a 9-2 lead and kept the lead until McCelleis made a 3-pointer, then a rebound bucket for a 19-19 tie with 3:42 to play in the first half. Northwest Rankin went on a 10-4 run to grab a 29-23 lead at halftime.
No. 4 made a driving layup for a 37-25 Northwest Rankin lead – its biggest of the game – with 5 minutes to play in the third quarter, but Madison Central battled back and made 9 of 13 free throw attempts in the third quarter – including 4 for 4 by McCruter – to close to 41-40 going into the fourth quarter.
The teams exchanged leads in the fourth quarter then Northwest Rankin appeared to have to game in hand with a 53-48 lead with 39.7 seconds to play when Bennett made two free throws.
But Bolden made a layup to cut the lead to 53-50, after a Northwest Rankin turnover, Morris made a shot in the lane to close the gap to 53-52. McCelleis made two free throws with 11.2 seconds for a 55-52 lead before Benson sank her 3-pointer to send the game into overtime.
Despite Benson leaving the game with an apparent leg injury with 2:32 to play (Taylor said she is fine but didn’t return to the game), Madison Central took the lead when Bolden made a layup, Morris made a drop step move for a basket and Robinson made two free throws for a 61-55 lead with 26 seconds to play. Northwest Rankin finally scored in overtime when Jones – who battled cramps in the second half and overtime – made a layup with 6 seconds to play.
“Our team is resilient,” said Taylor, who has three returning starters (Robinson, Morris, and McCruter) from last year’s team, which finished 14-15. “After nine days without a game, we were a little out of sync at first, but we stayed composed, battled back, and found a way to win. We’re focused on getting better every day. This is a special group that wants to compete and wants to win. We’re taking it one game at a time.”
“Our foul trouble affected our play in the fourth quarter and overtime,” said Brown, who has three starters (McCelleis, 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. “It’s hard to overcome 10 fouls being called against you in the third quarter. Also, it’s hard to overcame 13 free throws being shot in the third quarter to our four. I’m proud of the way our team competed against Madison Central and their crew. We had outstanding play from our point guards, Hannah Jones and Malia McCelleis. We also had real good play from senior forward Jordyn Crumedy. They all scored in double digits and were really solid defensively. Two really good teams competed today and it’s unfortunate that we came up short but I look forward to the opportunity to run it back at a neutral site in the future.”
Brown has tried to improve her strength of schedule to prepare her team for region play and the playoffs.
“Our goal this season is to play the toughest schedule possible,” Brown said. “That includes playing teams like Booneville. They are a multiple state championship program and playing teams like them that play a different style than we play only makes us better. We are also playing Starkville, Canton, Hoover (Ala.), Brandon, Meridian, and Hancock. We’ve also played Neshoba Central, and Choctaw Central.”
