March is the best month of the year for prep basketball coaches. That is when the Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA) and Mississippi Association of Independent Schools (MAIS) crown state champions.
Each March brings new stories with regular participants, such as the Starkville High School boys returning to Jackson, while other newcomers, such as Columbus High boys last season, take center stage at Mississippi Coliseum.
For coaches, the second favorite time of the year is the two-week holiday break in December. Once considered much-needed time off for the players, coaches now fill that stretch with extended workouts and games against high-caliber opposition in a variety of tournaments.
The Starkville High girls enter 2017 with a 15-0 record. In each of the past two seasons, Starkville has seen its season end in the semifinals of the Class 6A State tournament in Jackson.
Coach Kristie Williams said her team’s biggest growth and development has taken place during the holidays.
“It’s a chance to focus on basketball,” Williams said. “You can do those few extra things you can’t get to do during regular practices. If you want to be a state championship contender, you have to play some games during the holidays. We have tried to measure ourselves against some really good competition.”
Starkville High did that late last month during the two-day Travis Outlaw Slam Dunk at the Hump at Mississippi State’s Humphrey Coliseum. Columbus High played host to the two-day Joe Horne Columbus Christmas Classic, while New Hope played host to the two-day New Hope New Year Trojan Classic and Columbus Christian Academy played host to a four-day Christmas tournament in Steens.
The Columbus High girls enter 2017 with a 10-3 record. Last week, the Lady Falcons won Tuesday and Wednesday to take the title at the Alcorn Central tournament. They followed that up Friday with a victory against New Hope at the Trojan Classic.
“I think it’s the most important stretch of the season,” Columbus coach Yvonne Hairston said. “You really have to be dedicated to the game. Sometimes, your players are not going to get as much work in during the holidays as you would like, so it’s best just keep them all together. We had some good practice time. We also played some games.
“You want them to have a little time off and you are able to do that. However, it is great to watch a basketball team grow and develop when they can focus solely on basketball and not be caught up with school.”
The growth of both teams has been noticeable.
With so many veterans, Starkville is looking for consistency. Kelsey Jones continues to be the anchor in the paint, while juniors Jariyah Covington and Tabreea Gandy continue to make strides.
Hairston also is excited about the growth of her team. Two of Columbus’ losses are to Starkville. However, each loss was well contested.
Columbus is beginning to find some offensive punch from Hannah White and Briona Green to go with leading scorer Zaria Jenkins. With other teams locked in on stopping Jenkins, it is imperative for other players to make contributions.
The New Hope girls entered the New Year with a 10-4 record. Coach Chad Brown’s second squad already has won more games than it did a season ago.
Brown said his team also has benefited from the extra time in the gym during the holidays. The Lady Trojans are still trying to find more consistency. Brown said the squad gets down at times and can’t battle back from adversity, so he has used the time off the emphasize playing better for a longer stretches.
On the boys side, the strides Gary Griffin’s first Columbus High squad made during the holidays were obvious. Leading scorer Robert Woodard II missed a loss to South Atlanta, but he was in the lineup for hard-fought wins against New Hope.
Columbus is 6-6 after beating New Hope 71-62 in overtime at the Joe Horne and 60-58 at the Trojan Classic.
“We have played such a demanding schedule,” Griffin said. “We still have a young team in a lot of positions on the floor. I think the confidence level dropped a little bit. During the holidays, we were able to go to the gym and concentrate on getting better. It is easier to get better in practice, instead of playing games. We really played two complete games against a very good New Hope team.”
The New Hope boys entered the New Year at 11-5. Drew McBrayer’s squad split two games at Joe Horne — beating Senatobia and losing to Columbus. New Hope lost to Brandon and Columbus in its tournament. In between the tournaments, Columbus beat traditional power Madison Central at home.
“We really had a tough stretch of games,” McBrayer said. “In the postseason, you will have a tough stretch of games, so we tried to put something similar to that together during the break. The kids have responded with a really great attitude. They know that playing in this type of situations will make us better for February.”
Meanwhile, the Starkville boys are rolling at 12-2. Greg Carter’s squad has played in each of the last two Class 6A State championship games. This squad has more depth and more length. Starkville beat Tupelo and Raleigh Egypt at the Hump and then defeated Kemper County at New Hope. Starkville beat Tupelo twice in December and has two victories against Columbus.
“We have a long way to go, but any coach is going to say that,” Carter said. “I really like how hard this team competes. They are very coachable. There are some other teams that are the favorite (in 6A). We just want to be in the mix in the end.”
Every coach can agree to that sentiment.
Scott Walters is a sports writer for The Dispatch. He can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @dispatchscott.
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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