Melrose Wins AAA Title

Murfreesboro, Tn - Junior Chris Jones scored 35 points and hit 18 of 19 free throws to lift Memphis Melrose over defending champion White Station 75-70 in the Class AAA boys state finals Saturday night.

Top-ranked Melrose (37-4) defeated its Memphis district rivals for the fourth time in five games this season. It was the Golden Wildcats' fourth state Tennessee Secondary Schools Athletic Association boys basketball title but first since 1983.

Memphis signee Joe Jackson of White Station (28-9), named AAA Mr. Basketball after the game, hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer and finished with 22 points, eight below his average.

Adonis Thomas, also a Mr. Basketball finalist, scored 17 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and had four blocks for Melrose. Tournament MVP Jones, a Tennessee commitment, hit 13 of 14 free throws in the final quarter. His only miss at the foul line came with 36 seconds left and Melrose leading 71-65.

Melrose went up by 12 in the third quarter on Jones' 3-point play, but White Station whittled it to 55-50 going into the final period. Rodriguez Tucker's putback with 2:05 left cut it to 63-60 but he missed a chance for a three-point play. The Golden Wildcats hit 12 of 14 on free throws in the final 1:52 including 9 of 10 by Jones.

Julian Burton added 12 points, going 3 of 3 from 3-point range, and Harry Green scored 11 for White Station, which got off to an 8-2 start.

Jones scored seven points in the 1:50 before halftime, hitting a 3-pointer with 1:07 left and then stealing the ball for a layup for a 35-32 Melrose lead.

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APTV 03-20-10 2124CDT