FLOWOOD — Richard Duease didn't like the trend.
Two consecutive seasons without winning a state championship, lined up next to the Madison-Ridgeland Academy basketball coach's 41 titles. It wasn't the "MRA way" as Duease coined it.
But that short tendecy flipped after the Patriots won the MAIS 4A-Division I championship, beating Jackson Prep 70-45 on Feb. 14 at Jackson Prep Gymnasium. The win marks the fourth MRA (32-2) victory over Jackson Prep (20-14) this season.
"It's been three years since we won a state championship and at MRA, that's not what we like," Duease said. "We have two strong senior leaders, (Will) Bizot and Evan Carr, and they just been great leaders the whole year. I think this is the best passing team we've had in a long time."
Heading into the 2025-26 season, Duease knew a change had to be made. As the Patriots ended last season with a 17-14 record, he had to revert to his old practice routine. The normal MRA way.
"Practice has been pretty rough," he said. "I mean, I went back to my old ways and some of them liked it, some of them don't like it. But if you do the little things right, you're gonna be successful. Because the big things come easy when you do the little things right."
Those consisted of more outdoor work and intense practices, which sophomore center Erick Dampier Jr. said were at times more than tough.
"When we first started (the season), we were outside running with conditioning," said Dampier, who ended the night with a team-high 20 points.
Dampier noticed the struggles last season. He and MRA dealt with the losses head-on and accepted the change into this season. It has translated into a state championship and a 30-plus-win season.
"It doesn't matter who it is; every play is always going to be intense," Dampier said. "It doesn't matter who is in the building, it doesn't matter who's playing, (Duease) is going to be behind everybody."
In Duease's final season, a state championship was great, but the MAIS Overall tournament is what the Patriots are eyeing. It begins the week of Feb. 16, and Duease knows he has either one or, at most, four games left in his 51-year tenure. MRA has not won an overall title since 2021.
Duease, Mississippi's winningest coach, would like to end his career the only way he knows how — with a win.
"It's the main goal," he said. "They know that and we're going to have a tough road. It's going to be a great overall. A lot of good teams in it and it's going to be good every game."
Michael Chavez covers high school sports, among others, for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at [email protected] or reach out to him on X, formerly Twitter @MikeSChavez.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: MAIS boys basketball, MRA coach Richard Duease wins 42nd state title