Jackson Academy rolls to 69-47 win over MRA in showdown of MAIS heavyweights
JACKSON — Jackson Academy brothers Mason and Mike Williams must have had Wednesday night's cross-town rivalry game against MRA circled on the calendar.
The Williams brothers rose to the occasion as the Raiders used a big second half to race past previously undefeated Madison-Ridgeland Academy 69-47 at the Raider Dome on Wednesday night.
“Mason had his best game as a Raider,” said Jackson Academy coach Jesse Taylor. “We had a little meeting at halftime and the guys came out in the second half, played like we’re capable of and showed toughness on the defensive end.”
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The first half was back-and-forth, but MRA never trailed. The Patriots held a slim 17-14 lead at the end of the first quarter. MRA opened the second quarter on a 7-2 run to stretch their lead to 24-16, but Jackson Academy went on a quick 6-0 run to cut the lead to down to 24-22. The Patriots held a 32-27 lead at halftime.
The second half was all Raiders, as they outscored the Patriots 42-15. Jackson Academy opened the third quarter with a 18-2 run to take a 47-34 lead. The Patriots cut the JA lead down to 49-40 late in the quarter, but the Raiders got back-to-back lay-ups from Mike Williams and Marcus Goodloe to extend the lead to 53-42 at the end of the frame.
In the fourth quarter, JA went on a 14-2 run to stretch their lead to 67-44 and sealed the game from that point.
Mason Williams had a game-high 27 points to lead Jackson Academy.
“We wanted to win this game bad because all the rankings had them ranked No. 1 and we were behind them and we didn’t like that. We knew we were better than them as a team,” Mason Williams said. “I saw the ball really well and tonight me and my brother went at them. Coach wanted us to play fast and push the ball up the floor and speed them up. We came together as a team in the second half and played well together.”
Mike Williams added 20 points for the Raiders (22-1, 3-0 MAIS District 1-6A).
“We have a very unselfish team and it’s somebody else every night that steps up and we need to that to continue,” Taylor said. “To win a game like this over an undefeated team and a lot of people had them ranked No. 1 we knew we had a challenge, and our guys were up for it and answered.”
Jas Smith had 21 points to lead MRA. The Patriots (24-1, 2-1) turned the ball over 23 times.
“We got sped up in the second half, unlike the first half where we kept the game under control,” said MRA coach Richard Duease. “When we got behind we tried to do too much, and JA is a really good team. Our whole league has really good teams, so the question is how will we respond on Friday night against Hartfield and Raymond on Saturday.”
