MTCS girls basketball falls to Webb in TSSAA state championship, star Jailyn Banks' final game

Toyloy Brown III
Knoxville News Sentinel

COOKEVILLE -- For the second straight year, Middle Tennessee Christian girls basketball fell one win short of a championship.

If you ask star senior guard Jailyn Banks what she’ll remember from her time at MTCS, it is the achievements, most notably, twice leading the Lady Cougars to the championship game, a first for the program.

“Just continuing to make history for our school,” Banks said. 

MTCS fell 73-43 to Webb School - Bell Buckle in the TSSAA Division II-A BlueCross Girls Basketball Championship game on Saturday at Tennessee Tech.

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MTCS (26-10) lost to Webb for the second straight year in the championship game. Webb (32-4) won its third consecutive state title. 

Webb’s 6-foot-6 Aalyah Del Rosario, an LSU signee, finished with 21 points and 13 rebounds. Banks finished with 13 points and six rebounds.

“They’re so many amazing things about J,” said MTCS coach Hannah Jones. “Her work ethic, that’s how she leads is by example. Her against anyone in the state tournament, she has the work ethic. She’s a competitor to her core but she loves really deeply.”

MTCS played strong offensively in the opening eight minutes. Freshman Anna Clay Shirley made MTCS’  first two shots, both 3-pointers.

While the Lady Cougars trailed Webb 17-12 by the quarter’s end, Webb was unable to make any of its five 3-point attempts. MTCS also shot a better field goal percentage -- 42% to 35%.

MTCS lost control of the game in the second quarter. Webb outscored MTCS 20-8. 

“Physicality, they’re all big, they’re all tall, they push in transition,” Jones said. "Six Power five (conference) kids, what are you going to do, so we tried to do our best.”

Banks picked up her third personal foul with 4:19 left in the second quarter, forcing her to sit the rest of the first half. 

Banks, a Belmont signee and Miss Basketball finalist, converted two of her seven field goals for four points in the half -- all of the Lady Cougars’ points in the quarter up to this point. 

The halftime score was 37-22 in favor of Webb, and MTCS was never able to close the gap.