It’s only fitting that it all comes down to this.
Amanda Elzy started the season amid state championship hype and spent most of the year ranked No. 1 in Class 4A.
The Panthers (26-5) have lived up to those expectations and are in position to claim the school’s first state basketball championship.
Only No. 2 Corinth (29-5) stands in the way. The two teams will square off at 8:30 p.m. Friday in the MHSAA State 4A finals at the Mississippi Coliseum in Jackson.
It’s a rematch of the North 4A championship game. The hot-shooting Warriors won 74-71 to end Elzy’s 12-game win streak.
“We’re looking forward to this game and getting another shot at (Corinth) with so much on the line,” Elzy coach Gerald Glass said.
Glass, an 1985 Elzy graduate and one of the top basketball players in the history of the school, would love to bring the first state crown to his alma mater, but he’s trying not to get too caught up in the emotions of it all.
“I just can’t allow myself to think about it because we have unfinished business. I have to keep everyone focused on the game, including myself,” Glass said.
Elzy punched its ticket to Friday’s finals with a 63-59 victory over Laurel on Monday. Rahkeem Lehaman led the way with 19 points and 10 rebounds.
“It’s incredible being in this position,” said Lehaman. “Everybody has been supporting us, and we just want to make our city happy.”
Corinth defeated Bay High 58-55 as it got 35 points from its post players, led by 6-3 senior forward Deione Week and 6-4 sophomore center Raheem Sorrell. Both went for 14 points.
But in the game nearly two weeks ago against Elzy, the Warriors did a lot of damage from outside, hitting 10 of 16 from 3-point range.
They also were 10 of 10 at the foul line in the second half, including 8 of 8 in the final 90 seconds.
“We have to play tough defense and get a hand in the face of their shooters,” Glass said. “We have to get in front of the them and keep their quick guards from penetrating and putting pressure on our defense. We’ve got to stop reaching and getting in early foul trouble.”
Another major area of concern for the Panthers will be taking better care of the ball. They had 24 turnovers in the win over Laurel, with 15 coming in the second half to allow the Golden Tornadoes to trim a 13-point deficit to two.
“We’ve got to make better decisions, not rush things and take what the defense is giving us,” Glass said.
Corinth, which is seeking its sixth state championship, lost in the state 3A finals last year to Booneville before moving up to Class 4A for this season.
The Warriors are led by the trio of Deione Weeks, Eric Richardson and Raheem Sorrell.
Weeks, a 6-3 senior forward and Northwest Mississippi Community College football signee, leads the team with 16.5 points a contest.
Richardson, a 6-2 senior guard, is next at 15.4, followed by 6-4 sophomore center Sorrell with 11.5.
Elzy has four players averaging double figures: 6-2 sophomore guard Maurice Dunlap (16.1), Lehaman (15.4), 6-8 junior center Janarius Middleton (15.3) and 6-1 senior guard Larry Johnson (15.1).
n Contact Bill Burrus at 581-7237 or bburrus@gwcommonwealth.com.
