OLIVE BRANCH, Miss — We are in prime baseball season, but summer basketball is heating up. And no, I’m not talking about the NBA Summer League. This weekend, Olive Branch native and NFL legend KJ Wright held his third annual Olive Branch High School charity alumni game. This year, a notable change brought an intense north Mississippi rivalry into the mix.
Even though this is a charity basketball game, there were no easy buckets in Olive Branch this weekend. With the addition of Holly Springs, the matchup felt more like a playoff game. But at the end of the day, both teams are playing for one goal: giving back to their community.
“Man, I'm super thankful just to get back to these kids, give back to the communities," K.J. Wright, 49ers defensive quality control coach, said. "All the proceeds are going to Olive Branch High School student athletes and Holly Springs student athletes. So the funds raised get the community together and excited for a good cause to see some hoopers.”
People from all over north Mississippi poured into Olive Branch High School on Saturday night to enjoy good food and watch an intense rivalry play out.
This is the first year the proceeds from the food and tickets sales will benefit two schools.
“Their idea in what they’re doing is actually not just for their home. They want to affect other homes, and that’s a big thing," Jonathan Bownes of the Holly Springs Bad Hawks said. "We are only stronger together in the end."
The game is for a good cause, but this rivalry runs deep.
“Man, this goes back, I know, to the ’90s,” Bownes added.
And believe me, there was plenty of talking leading up to the game.
“We step on this court. Talking is over, straight balling," Wright said. "We'll see who the best is to the baddest in town."
The Olive Branch women’s team picked up the win in the first game, but the men’s game went a completely different route.
Olive Branch got off to a hot start behind Japanese league player Tray Boyd III, but the Bad Hawks jumped out to a double-digit lead in the second half. You could feel the depth of the rivalry inside the arena.
Olive Branch fought back, but Holly Springs held on and eventually won by 12 points.
Even though Wright and the Conquistadors couldn’t secure a win, they and the rest of the participants accomplished their goal at the sold-out alumni game.
“No, I'm just truly thankful that the Holly Springs Bad Hawks chose to play against us so that we can give back to our community and our student-athletes,” Wright said. “And I'm really doing this game to show the guys coming behind me that, hey, when K.J. Wright is done, you’ve got to do something really big and epic like this as well.”
After what transpired this weekend, next year’s game will be even more intense.