MADISON &045; The Adams County Christian School Rebels were down by 10 points to a taller Lee Academy team with time winding down not only in the game but also in the Rebels’ season.

But just like in their win over Jackson Prep in last Friday night’s South State semifinals at Parklane Academy, ACCS would find a way to win.

Luke Ogden’s game-winning shot with 5.2 seconds left gave the Rebels a 39-38 win over the Colts from Clarksdale Tuesday night in the first round of the MPSA Class 3A State Tournament at Madison-Ridgeland Academy.

Ogden finished with 11 points and Dustin Case led the team in scoring with 13 points.

&uot;We went to full-court pressure (in the fourth quarter) to pick up the pace of the game,&uot; Rebels head coach Ricky Gray said. &uot;Our defensive intensity really picked up. We were down 10 with 3:00 to play. We had three key steals.&uot;

Ogden was fouled on the shot, but missed the free throw. Lee immediately called time out and had one last chance to win the game. However, the shot rimmed around and out.

With the win, ACCS (19-9), the South No. 2 seed, will play the winner of the Jackson Academy-Jackson Prep game at 6 p.m. Friday in one semifinal game.

And to the delight of ACCS fans, the Rebels will also be playing in next week’s Overall Tournament at Mississippi College in Clinton.

&uot;It’s an exciting time for us,&uot; Gray said, &uot;but we’ve still got business to take care of here at State. We’ve got to go back and get ready for one of the Jackson schools.&uot;

ACCS trailed Lee (23-8) 11-5 at the end of the first quarter, but the Rebels outscored the Colts 9-7 in the second quarter to trail 18-14 at halftime.

Gene Pepper led Lee with 18 points.

&uot;Their size was an advantage,&uot; Gray said. &uot;We couldn’t run. They played great defense. We couldn’t score tonight.&uot;

Lee’s soft man-to-man kept ACCS from penetrating inside and the Colts’ height advantage helped them to a 12-6 advantage in the third quarter and a 30-20 lead going into the fourth quarter.

The Rebels’ press defense finally wore down Lee in the fourth quarter as they outscored the Colts 19-6 in the final eight minutes of play.

&uot;We did a much better job on the boards in the fourth quarter,&uot; Gray said. &uot;We stepped it up on defense and kept them from scoring.&uot;

Leake girls 69, Centreville 58

BROOKHAVEN &045; Leake Academy’s Kristin Caldwell lit up the Lady Tigers with 36 points, 28 of those in the first half, as the Lady Rebels defeated the Lady Tigers in the opening round of the MPSA Class 2A State Tournament Tuesday night at Brookhaven Academy.

Leake Academy, the North No. 1 seed, improved to 38-2 and moved on to the semifinals. Centreville, the South No. 4 seed, finished at 15-14.

&uot;The girls played a great game,&uot; Lady Tigers head coach John Brashier said. &uot;They never gave up. I told them after the game that you deserve to be one of the top eight teams.&uot;

Jenae Jackson led Centreville with 31 points, while Jenny Watts was held to seven points.

&uot;Jenny didn’t shoot the ball as well as she does,&uot; Brashier said. &uot;She and Jenae picked up some early fouls. Jenae had three fouls and we had to sit her with 3:00 to go in the (first) half.&uot;

Centreville’s defense was designed to slow down Leake’s Greggina Padlock, who was averaging 28 points a game in the Lady Rebels’ last 10 games. She was held to 13 points.

However, the Lady Tigers couldn’t stop Caldwell in the first half as Leake took a 23-14 lead after one quarter of play and 39-30 at halftime.

Centreville also missed nine free throws in the first half, something Brashier said was a key factor in the game.

&uot;They have a girls (Caldwell) who’s one of the best post players in the state,&uot; he said. &uot;She really got us in the first half. But we held her to eight points in the second half.&uot;

Centreville opened up the third quarter with an 8-0 run to cut the lead to 39-38 with 5:00 to go in the quarter. However, Leake went on a 7-0 run to take a 46-38 lead.

&uot;We had four or five turnovers (during Leake’s run) and that was the turning point in the game,&uot; Brashier said.