Oxford’s Kylan Blackmon and Lafayette’s Azariah Buford have been selected to represent the state of Mississippi in the 2020 Mississippi-Alabama All-Star basketball game.

Both seniors, it’s the second straight year being named to a Mississippi All-Star team for both Blackmon and Buford. A year ago as juniors, they both made the Mississippi North All-Star team.

“I couldn’t be prouder. Very well deserving and I know she’s going to do great,” Lafayette head coach Shane Linzy said. “She definitely deserves the selection and I know she’ll be fine. She can play with those kids.”

Buford, the EAGLE’s All-Area player of the year in 2019, is averaging 15.1 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game this year for the Lafayette team that is currently 13-2 and ranked No. 6 in the state by MaxPreps, independent of their classification.

Despite the offensive numbers, arguably the most impressive part of her game this season has come on the defensive end of the court. Burford, through 15 games on the season, has totaled 93 steals.

On the other side, the Oxford boys have a lot of senior firepower. However, when they need a bucket, Blackmon always seems to be the go-to man. This past Friday, part of a 28-point outing, Blackmon hit a game-winning jump shot with under three seconds to go for Oxford to remain undefeated in region play.

“Being on the team, it means a lot. They’re seeing my hard work pay off, but we still have a lot of work to do. I have a lot more to accomplish; I want a ring,” Blackmon said. “I have a good relationship with a couple of those guys, Cameron (Matthews) from Olive Branch and Decorian (Payton) from Center Hill. It’ll be fun.”

This season, Blackmon is averaging 26.1 points, 7.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. Last year in the Mississippi North-South All-Star game, Blackmon was named MVP of the game after dropping 14 points, including hitting four three-point shots.

The All-Star game will take place on Friday, March 13, at the A.E. Wood Coliseum on the campus of Mississippi College in Clinton. Both Blackmon and Buford will take the court next at Lafayette High School on Tuesday, the second of two meetings between Lafayette and Oxford this season.