Why the pain won't last for JCM after losing its first TSSAA boys basketball state tournament
MURFREESBORO — BJ Ballard walked off the court at MTSU's Murphy Center into a massive crowd of green and gold clad fans.
But his heart was hurting. His Jackson Central-Merry Cougars had lost to Jackson County, 66-56, in the Class 2A TSSAA boys basketball state tournament in the school's first appearance. The TSSAA recognizes the JCM Academy's 1976 appearance as a different school.
Ballard said the experience was memorable, but the sting of the loss was in his heart.
"It was a very fun experience," Ballard said. "I got to play with the guys I love, the guys that been with me through my good and bad, they've been there with me. I'm very excited for them, I know they're going to get in the gym and work harder than they ever did just to get back here."
JCM (21-10) coach Kendall Dancy, who guided Haywood to a state championship in 2015, said that the support that his team received throughout this process has been terrific.
From the sendoff the team got Tuesday in Jackson to the loud crowd inside Murphy Center on Wednesday, Dancy was impressed.
"Exciting, big environment for my guys to play in," Dancy said. "We're a rather young team, and we responded."
Sophomore Nathan Graham said playing in Murphy Center for the first time was exciting and nothing he had experienced before.
"It's a whole different feeling," Graham said. "It's the biggest arena I've ever been in. When you go against a team like that, it's hard to keep up when you go down by that much. Just got to keep building and we'll be here next year."
Ballard led the Cougars with 14 points and had four rebounds. Graham scored 13 and had two blocks, Landon Braswell added 10 points.
Jackson County (29-2) was led by Will McCrary's 28 points and 16 rebounds.
Ballard said he can walk away from his basketball career at JCM knowing that he left his mark on the program and can help create a new brand, a new standard, of getting to Murfreesboro.
For now, though, he's going to reflect.
"I was hurt, I still am," Ballard said. "I'm just grateful to be with this team. We made history."
Austin Chastain is a sports writer covering West Tennessee high schools. Reach him by email at achastain@gannett.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @ChastainAJ.
This article originally appeared on Jackson Sun: TSSAA state tournament: How JCM embraced first appearance
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