By Robert Wilson
Presley Thompson felt horrible when she woke up Tuesday morning, still dealing with flu symptoms. In fact, her mom, Susanne Thompson, didn’t know if she would be able to play in possibly the biggest girls basketball game in Mississippi Tuesday night despite getting vitamin D injections Monday.
Not only did the 5-foot-9 East Rankin Academy senior point guard play, but Thompson also scored the winning basket with 4 seconds to play to give MAIS Class 5A, District 2 rival Leake Academy its first loss this season after 25 consecutive wins.
Thompson not only made the winning basket, but she made a steal and scored a layup at the buzzer for the 43-39 victory before a packed gym of an estimated 900 at East Rankin’s Billy Dome, named for longtime East Rankin basketball coach Billy Rhodes, in Pelahatchie.
Defending MAIS Overall Tournament champion East Rankin improved to 25-2 overall and 6-1 in district play and avenged a 48-37 loss to Leake on Dec. 19 at Leake to end its 22-game winning streak, including 18 in a row to start this season. East Rankin is trying to become the first girls team to win back to back Overalls since Jackson Academy did in 2016 and 2017.
Leake dropped to 25-1 overall and 6-1 in district play. The Rebelettes was trying to become the first MAIS girls team to finish the season undefeated since Starkville Academy went 43-0 in the 2012-2013 season. No team since Starkville Academy had won this many games to start the season without a loss as Leake did until Tuesday night.
This was a highly anticipated rematch between two of the best teams in Mississippi. Since the two teams are in the same district, they could possibly play again in the district tournament at Lamar School, the North State Class 5A tournament at East Rankin, the Class 5A state tournament at Pillow Academy and the Overall tournament at Mississippi College in Clinton.
It was back and forth the entire night with more than a dozen lead changes. The game was tied at 10-10 after one quarter, Leake led 18-14 at halftime and 32-27 after three quarters.
In the frantic last few minutes, East Rankin’s 6-3 sophomore center Liz Stevens made a great reverse post move for a 36-34 East Rankin lead with 3:30 to play. Leake junior Addie Crowe made a driving layup for a 36-36 tie with 2:40 to play. After a Leake turnover, junior guard Ansley Miller hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key for a 39-36 East Rankin lead with 49 seconds to play. Then Leake senior Anna Morgan Young connected on a 3-pointer from the left corner for a 39-39 tie with 20 seconds to play.
Then it was time for Thompson’s heroics. She dribbled down the left side of the lane for a left-handed layup with 4 seconds to play. Leake called timeout to set up the possible tying or winning shot with 3.5 seconds to play, but Thompson stole a pass and made another left-handed layup at the buzzer for the final score.
Said East Rankin coach Brooke Rhodes: “I am so proud of Presley. She went and made a huge play like a senior should and does. I knew when she attacked, she was going to score.”
And Thompson did despite not feeling well at all. But she focused on playing for her teammates in this big game, and made the biggest of the night.
“I woke up and felt horrible, but I knew how much this game meant to me and my team, so I made myself push through it,” said Thompson, who finished with 10 points. “My teammates and coaches were the biggest leaders to me telling me to keep pushing. (On the winning shot), the plan was to get a post play or a three from one of our guards and we didn’t get that off, so I saw a gap and took it. It felt amazing to be able to do that, but I wouldn’t have been able to do it without my teammates’ help. It was a big win and a big step forward for my team and me.”
It wasn’t the first time Thompson had a game-winning shot this season. She made a 5-foot bank shot with 1.3 seconds to play for a 49-48 victory over defending MAIS Class 6A state champion Jackson Prep Nov. 4 at the Madison Madness tournament at MRA in Madison.
Stevens – a member of the Tatum and Wade/Mississippi Scoreboard Preseason Metro Jackson Elite 11 Team and a Division I recruit – led East Rankin with 12 points and 17 rebounds. Junior guard Holly Jackson, a member of the Elite Team and Copiah-Lincoln Community College softball signee, and Miller had nine points each.
“I was really proud of how we came together as a team in the fourth quarter. We were down five going into it and we rallied around each other to finish strong,” said Rhodes, who was named the PriorityOne Bank/Mississippi Scoreboard Metro Jackson Coach of the Year after leading East Rankin to a school record 39 wins and the Overall title last season. “Basketball is really fun when you play it with a smile and having fun with your teammates when they make a big play or big shot and I think we figured that out last night. That was a big game for our group to win in an atmosphere. Holly got us going to start the fourth and that was huge, and we needed some big possessions. Liz battled very well for the ball on the glass and played great. Ansley was awesome defensively and hit a big 3 in the fourth when we went up by 3 late.”
“Give credit to Coach Rhodes and her team for getting the win,” said Leake coach Amanda Hatch, who has a 373-48 record – an amazing 88.6 percent winning percentage – and one Overall title in her 11th season at Leake and has 488 career wins in her 16th season as a head coach. “Their length made it tough for us to get good looks, so we didn’t shoot it well from 3 (4 of 19) and missed some easy ones around the basket. We gave up some early offensive rebounds and too many points in transition off turnovers. I’m proud of my team, as always, for the effort they gave and how they represented our school.”
Eighth-grade guard Sarah Prince had a game-high 16 points for Leake, which scored the second fewest points this season. No other player scored more than 6 points. Only MHSAA Class 4A power Choctaw Central had held Leake to fewer points (a 36-30 Leake win). Leake had scored more than 50 points in 21 points its 25 games, including its first 13 games, before Tuesday.
Leake now must focus on beginning a new winning streak and rebounding from this loss. Leake hadn’t lost since losing to Parklane Academy in the 5A state tournament last season.
“Disappointment is a part of basketball and it’s a part of life,’ Hatch said. “This group will bounce back and learn from our mistakes. We won’t dwell on it, just focus on the next game (Thursday in district game at Wayne Academy).”
