This Month in Rockingham County History: March - 1973

(Above: Mark Baker Celebrates Madison-Mayodan Win)

In March 1973, Rockingham County celebrated its own version of March mania with state championships in men’s basketball for two county high schools. Completing a perfect 25-0 season, Reidsville High School won the 4A division made up of the largest high schools in North Carolina, while Madison-Mayodan High School earned the title for 3A schools.

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​Wentworth High School was also a top-four contender for 1973 state honors, bowing out in the 1A semifinals to Orrum on a last-second basket. The Eagles, who won their third straight District 5 title, had a 21-3 record going into tournament play, with two of those losses being to 4A power Reidsville. Wentworth’s 6’4” senior Daryl Galloway was his team’s leading scorer and rebounder all season long and was the top vote-getter on the All-Conference team. 
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   For Madison-Mayodan (M-M), 1973 brought their second consecutive district title and the third trip to the state playoffs in five years for Coach Leroy Myers’ team. The year before, M-M had a 26-0 record when they lost to the eventual state champion Hendersonville and placed third. In the 1973 tournament held in Durham, a determined Falcons team defeated Bertie County and Ayden-Grifton in the early rounds, setting up a rematch with Hendersonville in the final game. Before an estimated crowd of 2500 with “the better part of western Rockingham County on hand,” according to one fan, M-M jumped out to a 19-4 lead in the first quarter and had an eight-point lead at halftime. The Bearcats rallied and took the lead in the third quarter, but M-M was able to come back, defeating the defending champs 48-44. “Defense won it for us,” Coach Myers told the press. M-M center Kim Cure contributed 11 points to the win, and forward Jerry Moore, who scored 29 points in the finals, with 13 in the fourth quarter, was named tournament MVP. About three hundred local supporters met the team back at Madison-Mayodan High School for a late night reception, where school officials, Coach Myers and players addressed their fans and celebrated the championship season.

(Above: the 1973 Madison-Mayodan State Championship Team. With standing left to right: Alan Atkins - Bill Elmore - Tony Johnson - Doug Sutton - Bo Rodenbough - Kim Cure - Sam Dalton - Perry Hairston - Larry Ziglar - Ronnie Davis - Ricky Atwood - Eddy Mooney. Kneeling left to right: Mark Baker - Jerry Moore)

​   Reidsville had had several 20-win teams and one previous state crown—in 1924 in the very early days of the North Carolina high school athletics system—but the 1973 team, with three returning starters, had the first undefeated season in school history. Legendary coach Hoy Isaacs, in his 26th year at Reidsville, took his team to the state finals for the fourth straight year. In the District finals, the Rams were victorious over High Point Andrews 60-53, with Melvin Watkins the leading scorer (21) and rebounder (17). The Reidsville team went on to beat Fayetteville Sanford and Gastonia Ashbrook in the state tournament, with the starting five—Armeneous Adams, Leon Richardson, Charlie Wilkerson, Gerald Courts, and Watkins—leading the way. In the state championship game, the Rams defeated Winston-Salem Reynolds 71-55, with all five starters scoring in double figures and the team shooting an impressive 78 percent. Watkins, Wilkerson, and Adams were named to the 4A All-Tournament team and Isaacs marked his 446th coaching win.

(Above: the 1973 Reidsville State Championship Team)

​   Both championship squads exhibited high levels of teamwork and a balance of offense and defense. Both teams also had outstanding players who went on to play college basketball. M-M’s Jerry Moore, who won All-State honors, went into the state tournament averaging 28 points per game. In a 51-point performance against Mt. Airy during the regular season, the forward hit 23 of 30 shots from the floor. Moore went from Madison-Mayodan to play at the University of Florida. Melvin Watkins was Reidsville’s standout, earning All-American honors and going on to play at UNC Charlotte. He was a leader on Charlotte’s Final Four team in 1977. Watkins has had a 42-year college coaching career, with stints at his alma mater, Texas A&M, Missouri, and most recently at the University of Arkansas.  
 
   State Senator Wesley Webster introduced a resolution in the 1973 North Carolina General Assembly recognizing the Madison-Mayodan Falcons, the Reidsville Rams, and the Wentworth Eagles for their achievements on the basketball court. March 1973 was the culmination of a truly championship season and one for the Rockingham County history books.

References
Reidsville Review articles: “Wentworth’s Daryl Galloway Tops All-Conference Team,” February 14, 1973, A11; Steve Williams, “Rams, Andrews Battle Friday in District Five Showdown,” February 15, 1973, A12; Steve Williams, “Rams Beat HP Andrews 73-65,” February 19, 1973, 13; “Ruffin, Bethany Post Wins in 1-A District Tourney,” February 22, 1973, A6; Dave Walker, “Wentworth Defeats B-M 67-48 To Win District 5, 1-A Crown,” February 26, 1973, 9; Steve Williams, “Rams Dump Andrews 60-53 To Win District Five Title,” February 26, 1973, 9; Dave Walker, “Rams Headed for State Playoffs Again,” in “Sports Orbit,” insert, February 1973, 2; Steve Williams, “Rams Rout Fayetteville Sanford 77-54,” March 1, 1973, 12; “Eagles Nip Elm City 76-72,” March 1, 1973, 12; Steve Williams, “Rams Down W-S Reynolds 71-55 To Win 4-A Title,” March 5, 1973, 10; Dave Walker, “Reidsville’s First 4-A Crown,” March 5, 1973, 10; “Eagles Finish 4th in 1A,” March 5, 1973, 10; The Messenger (Madison, NC) articles: “Moore Is Conference Player of Year,” February 15, 1973, 26; “M-M Falcons in State Playoffs,” March 1, 1973, 1; Meg Elmore, “Falcons Capture District Title,” March 1, 1973, 7; Meg Elmore, “Moore Picked As Player-of-Year,” March 1, 1973, 7; “Falcons Are Number One,” March 8, 1973, 1; Meg Elmore, “Falcons Went All the Way,” March 8, 1973, 11; Grady Elmore, “M-M Ready To Face Reidsville,” March 8, 1973, 11; Mimi Spear, “Some Like It Hot,” March 8, 1973, 2; Meg Elmore, “Tournament Notebook,” March 8, 1973, 11; Renocashi, Yearbook, Reidsville Senior High School, Volume XII, 1973, 167-169; The Falcon, Yearbook, Madison-Mayodan Senior High School, 1973, Volume 14, 70-81; “Hoy Isaacs,” North Carolina High School Athletic Association https://www.nchsaa.org/news/2019-7-8/hoy-isaacs; Arkansas Razorbacks, “Melvin Watkins Bio,”  https://arkansasrazorbacks.com/coache/melvin-watkins/;  North Carolina High School Athletic Association, “Men’s Basketball State Championships Won,” https://www.nchsaa.org/sites/default/files/attachments/Champions-M_3.pdf . See this source for a list of high school men’s basketball champions through 2014. Wentworth High School would go on to win its own state title in 1976.