Top 10 sophomore
Erick Dampier Jr. led the way with 25 points and 12 rebounds in the win. He has been the catalyst all season for the Patriots,
averaging 15.6 points, 12.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 2.5 blocked shots
per contest.
Duease retires with the third-highest win total in high school basketball history. The 74-year old is moving on with a record of 1,293-452 across 43 years as a boys coach. He also spent decades as a girls coach where he compiled a record of 592-271 across 26 seasons. He coached both boys and girls until 2002.
Overall, he has been a head coach in the high school basketball ranks for 51 consecutive seasons dating back to 1975 where he started his career as the girls coach at
Manchester Academy (Yazoo City, Miss.).
Duease led Madison-Ridgeland Academy to a 77-game win streak from 2008-11
and guided the program to five consecutive state championships multiple times. He has been named MAIS Coach of the Year over 30 times and was inducted into the MAIS Athletics Hall of Fame in 2006.
He became the career wins leader in Mississippi in 2017 when he earned his 1,024th career victory to surpass previous record-holder Norris Ashley.
Duease also holds the record for most titles in state history as he has captured 42 MAIS championships and 16 MAIS overall state titles.
After finishing last season with a record of 17-13, the Patriots flipped the script this year en route to a record of 36-2. Madison-Ridgeland Academy is No. 2 in the state according to the MaxPreps computer rankings after winning 18 straight games to close the season.
