Meridian boys basketball wins MHSAA 7A championship. Coach to add another 'Why Not Us' on ring
On Meridian boys basketball coach Ronald Norman's 2017 state championship ring, it reads "Why Not Us." He said it will soon change to "Why Not Us" times two.
The modification stems after Meridian (24-9) won the MHSAA Class 7A state championship with a 54-50 win over Clinton (23-7) at the Mississippi Coliseum and MHSAA's first 7A boys title after the new classification was added at the start of the 2023-24 school year.
"I honestly wanted this so bad for our kids," Norman said. "... For me, this is just like the first time. The people who get here and are all calm kudos to them. But I'm gonna enjoy every moment that I can and every opportunity that I get to come back.
"I'm going to enjoy this moment. ... I hope they enjoy this moment because there's nothing like it in the world."
Norman said there were many who doubted the Wildcats would reach the Class 7A title game, let alone win it all, but he kept receipts. He pointed to the work of his players, claiming he now has 18 roses on the roster that all grew from the concrete.
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"We don't look like much getting off the bus," Norman said. "But one thing I know, they will do their fighting. And my athletic director told me we better throw the first punch, and we did."
Meridian led during every minute of Saturday's game until a jump shot by Clinton's Trey Alexander gave the Arrows a 43-42 advantage. Norman said there was one player to keep his team level-headed in the final minutes − Javion Yarbrough.
"JR (Yarbough) said, 'Coach, we've been here before, we've been down before,' " Norman said. "We've been down a bunch of games. ... Those kids are resilient."
Yarbough told his teammates to not stress now when they've dealt with deficits much worse. For example, being down 20 points in a regular season game to only climb their way back. They were down 13 points in a district tournament game against Brandon and came back.
Meridian again relied on its experience.
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"We just don't panic," said Yarbough, who scored 28 points and won game MVP. "We've been in multiple situations like that before, so we don't panic."
This particular Meridian team has a saying: family on three, Wildcats on six, seven, eight, nine, gold ball. The creators were Yarbough and the teammates he grew up playing with in search of winning a state title.
"I mean, this a good group," Yarbough said. "Like these, my guys. We were the first group to come out with seven, eight, nine, gold ball. So it means a lot."
Michael Chavez covers high school sports, among others, for the Clarion-Ledger. Email him at mchavez@gannett.com or reach out to him on X, formerly Twitter @MikeSChavez
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Meridian boys basketball wins first MHSAA championship since 2017
