MOBILE — The 35th-annual Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Basketball Classic belonged to the Yellowhammer State as both the boys’ and girls’ teams emerged victoriously.

The Mitchell Center on the campus of South Alabama hosted Saturday’s festivities where the girls started things with an 81-71 decision that extended a win streak to eight games and increased their overall lead to 21-14. The boys followed that up with a 91-85 win to add on top of their lead in the all-time series to 19-16.

Howard provides spark from paint

Hewitt-Trussville’s 6-foot-2 center Ashlyn Howard, a late add to the Alabama girls’ roster this week, came off the bench to give her team a strong inside presence and that turned out to be the difference in the game. She earned MVP honors after she finished with a double-double that featured 13 points and a game-high 15 rebounds. Seven of her rebounds came on the offensive boards and at key times in the second half as she scored all 13 points.

The Alabama All-Stars struggled in the paint on offense and defense early on as Mississippi took an early lead. Howard came off the bench for the hosts and made a big difference as she finished the first half with eight rebounds.

A bulk of Alabama’s first-half offense came from Spring Garden’s Ace Austin and Vestavia Hills’ Sarah Gordon who poured in 15 and 8 points, respectively. Gordon delivered a pair of key 3-pointers as the teams went into halftime with a 32-32 tie.

The third quarter belonged to Alabama, however, as Howard inspired her team inside to complement a quick defense that forced turnovers, the Alabama All-Stars outscored the visitors 23-12 to take a 55-44 lead into the fourth period.

Hoover’s Kaitlyn Gipson and Park Crossing’s Saniya Jackson registered 17 and 11 points, respectively. Alabama out-rebounded Mississippi 72-54 overall where Haley Trotter of Chelsea pulled down eight and Jackson managed seven.

Mississippi was led by Calloway guard Jhanna Wilson who earned MVP honors with a team-high 16 points and three assists. Nadia Norfleet of Tupelo added 13 points and Zariyah Edwards of Starkville added 10.

Hoover’s Brown, London close careers on high note

Hoover High School seniors Dewayne Brown and Salim London made the most of their last high school basketball game together when they won the school’s third-straight Class 7A state championship — until Saturday’s Alabama-Mississippi All-Star game.

The pair showed why Hoover finished 35-0 and won their last 45 games with them in the lineup but their final game together may have been the finest hour.

With both leading the way, Alabama clawed out a 91-85 win over Mississippi to complete their incredible prep careers with a 46th win in their personal streak.

Brown, a 6-foot-10 center heading to the University of Tennessee, earned MVP honors with 27 points, 14 rebounds and three blocked shots. His long reach challenged Mississippi’s offensive strength inside by altering another dozen shots.

London, a 6-foot-5 guard heading to UAB, finished with a game-high 30 points where he hit 12-of-16 attempts from the field which included a 4-of-6 mark from the 3-point line. He also had five rebounds and two assists.

Both players smiled with pride as the game ended. “We haven’t had a game like this since we were sophomores,” said London.

Hoover’s connection ignited a quick second-half surge as London nailed a 3-pointer, Brown tipped in a missed shot, blocked a shot on defense and London added a twisting layup to turn a 43-41 halftime deficit into a 48-43 lead.

The hosts turned up the defense after intermission to build a 55-49 lead at the 16-minute mark of the second half. Brown dominated the boards with five rebounds in that span.

The highlight of the day came two minutes later when Brown blocked a Mississippi shot on defense into the hands of Huntsville guard J.D. Gossett, who then fired a behind-the-back pass to Brown who streaked to the basket and slammed a dunk for a 65-55 lead.

Mississippi was led by Mike Williams of Germantown with 19 points. Ashton Magee of South Jones and Phil Nelson of Ridgeland were not far behind with 16 points each. Nelson also had three assists and four steals to earn MVP honors for Mississippi.