By CURTIS ROCKWell/Sports Director

JACKSON— St. Stanislaus junior guard Rafael Cohen gets the “Baria Law Firm Game Ball of the Week” this week.

Every week throughout the end of the school year, we will honor student/athletes across the “Southern Six” with our “Game Ball of the Week” sponsored by David Baria, Attorney-Mediator.

The Rock-A-Chaws captured their second overall state basketball championship Saturday, and second in 15 years, and Cohen was a major reason why.

St. Stanislaus conquered Quitman 49-32 here at The Mississippi Coliseum in the Class 3A title tilt. Cohen, in just his first season with the Rocks, led head coach Daniel Grieves squad to an impressive 31-4 record, and the only three losses to Mississippi competition came to a trio of Class 7A foes, all of which went on to qualify for the state playoffs as well.

And Cohen saved some of his best work for The Big House. He led St. Stanislaus to a 49-41 win over Booneville with 17 points in a Final Four semifinal match-up Wednesday night, with seven points coming in the third quarter when he carried the Rocks through a tough stretch.

Then, in the championship contest three days later, he tallied a game-high 22 points and grabbed five rebounds in the win over the Panthers.

For his work, he was named the MVP.

SSc head coach Daniel Grieves said: “Rafael Cohen continued what he has done all year long. He got stronger as the season progressed. That does not usually happen. He prepared his body for this run.”

Cohen will end his junior season as a member of the South squad in the annual Mississippi Sports Medicine North/South All-Star Game at A.E. Wood Coliseum on the campus of Mississippi College in a few weeks.

The Baria Law Firm, the Gulf Coast branch of Cosmich, Simmons and Brown, provides a beacon of trust and reliability in a complex legal landscape. Our firm’s unwavering dedication to you is at the core of everything we do. Choose David Baria of Baria Law as your legal ally, and let us handle the details while you focus on what matters most. Reach out to David at 228-395-8303 or dbaria@barialaw.com and at https://barialaw.com.