Madison-Ridgeland Academy came away with a clean sweep in the MAIS overall championships, earning double-digit wins in both boys’ and girls’ hoops.
On the boys’ side of things, the Richard Duease era came to an end with the Patriots defeating Jackson Academy 65-53 to earn the crown jewel for the first time since 2021. Duease, a member of the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame, capped a 50-plus-year career with nearly 1,900 wins, 42 state titles, and 16 MAIS overall tournament championships.
The mission was accomplished at Mississippi College’s A.E. Wood Coliseum on Tuesday night, with Erick Dampier Jr.’s 25 points, 12 rebounds, and eight blocks leading the way. The highly-touted sophomore is the son of former Mississippi State standout and NBA journeyman Erick Dampier. Other notable contributors for MRA in the title matchup were Zavion Carr, who had13 points and two rebounds, and Caeden Harvey, who had10 points and six rebounds.
As a team, MRA connected on 65% of its field goals, making up for 20 turnovers. Jackson Academy shot at a 34% clip, but kept the game competitive with 19 points from the Patriots’ giveaways. The Raiders were led by Marcus Goodloe’s 24 points and Austin Richards’ 11 rebounds.
MRA went through Rossville Christian, Claiborne Academy, and Hartfield before winning the championship game. Now that the 2025-26 season is officially over, Duease will ride out on top, completing a decorated career as the winningest high school basketball coach in the state of Mississippi.
“Coach Duease was the best coach I ever had in any sport at any level,” former MRA basketball star Ben Milam said of Duease and the impact he had on his players. “He never accepted anything less than everything you had and, in turn, gave his players everything he had. I’m proud to say he was my coach.”
On the girls’ side, head coach Stephen Force, after securing his 800th career win earlier this season, led the Patriots to a 37-25 overall championship victory over Simpson Academy. MRA was led by Presley Hughes’ 10 points and nine rebounds, along with Anna Morgan Anderson’s nine points and five rebounds. Simpson Academy was led by Jayda Smith’s seven points and Gracie Pinkerton’s seven rebounds.
The MRA girls went through Riverdale Academy, Parklane, and East Rankin before earning its first overall title since 2023.