Spielin’ & Dealin’ Ep. 11: State Championship Preview

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It has been over four months since the 2016-17 season tipped off and the GHSA state championships are finally here! The action begins on Wednesday and Thursday at Stegeman Coliseum (UGA) before shifting over to McCamish Pavilion (GT) on Friday and Saturday. Kyle Sandy previews all 16 state title games and gives his predictions on the biggest games of the season.

Final Four Recaps

Class AAAAAAA

(G) Norcross 37, Collins Hill 30: Vanessa Blagmon had 13 points and 6 rebounds followed by Taylor Mason’s 11 points and 6 rebounds.  Collins Hill got 9 points and 18 rebounds from Javyn Nicholson. Bria Harmon and Kayla Dixon both scored 6.

(B) Norcross 67, Grayson 48: Rayshaun Hammonds was too much inside with 20 points, 12 rebounds and 2 blocks. Lance Thomas had 12 points and 3 blocks. Kyle Sturdivant scored 14 and Jordan Goldwire collected 9 points and 7 assists. Travis Anderson finished with 14 points in the loss. Joey Chavez added 11.

(G) McEachern 78, Archer 58: Que Morrison had 24 points, 7 rebounds and 10 assists to lead the Indians. Jasmine Clements had 11 points and 17 rebounds. Lyndsey Whilby added 16. Archer got 18 points and 13 rebounds from Autumn Newby. Linsey Marcheses (13), Tia Shorter (11) and Asia McCoy (11) also pitched in.

(B) Tift County 56, McEachern 49: PJ Horne carried the Blue Devils in the first half and received help in the second. He scored 15 of his 17 points in the first 16 minutes. Micah Johnson pitched in 15 points. The Indians were led by Isaac Okoro’s 15 points and 6 rebounds. Babatunde Akingbola scored 14.

Class AAAAAA

(G) Harrison 57, Northview 39:  A finally healthy Sydne Wiggins poured in 21 points followed by Jazzy Foster and Audrey Jordan’s 10 apiece to lead the Hoyas past the Titans. Shannon Titus finished her Northview career with 19 points.

(B) Brunswick 67, South Cobb 61: Dereck Lampkin scored 19 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Marcus Scott had 16 points and Kymani Dunham added 10 points and 7 rebounds to carry the Pirates back to the state championship. Trevin Wade had 24 in the loss.

(G) Mays 50, Lovejoy 42: Kamiyah Street exploded for 32 points to race the Raiders past Lovejoy. Street sparked a personal 16-0 run to surge past the Wildcats after Mays trailed by 16 early. Street pumped in 25 points in the second half.

(B) Langston Hughes 59, Allatoona 57: Landers Nolley carried the Panthers from beyond the arc and poured in a game-high 34 points to beat Allatoona for the second time this season. Derrick Cook added 15 points in support. Trey Doomes paced the Buccaneers with 31.

Class AAAAA

(G) Southwest DeKalb 66, Flowery Branch 63: The Lady Falcons held an early lead but saw it slowly slip away. Taniyah Worth went off for 33 points and Lexie Sengkhammee had 9. Julianne Sutton added 10 points but Southwest DeKalb received 22 points from Jada Walton, 13 from Ruona Uwusiaba and 10 from Chantz Cherry to advance back to the title game.

(B) Cedar Shoals 59, Miller Grove 38: Phlan Fleming hung 25 points to pace the Jaguars. Stavion Stevenson had 15. Maurice Harvey scored 10 for Miller Grove.

(G) Buford 88, Griffin 50: Tory Ozment had 14 points and Tate Walters and Snoody Johnson both had 11.  Audrey Weiner and Jessica Nelson had 11 as well. Andeija Puckett scored 16 for Griffin while Daisya Reed added 13.

(B) Buford 83, Fayette County 60: Marcus Watson couldn’t be stopped, posting 25 points and 14 rebounds for the Wolves. Alex Jones scored 23 and David Viti netted 16. Fayette County was led by Austin Nesmith’s 19 points. Noah Gurley had 13 and Jaylen Holloway chipped in 10.

Class AAAA

(G) Columbus 62, Sandy Creek 50: Kasey Toles hit five threes and scored 20 points while Morghan Currie added 10 points and 6 blocks, but it wasn’t enough to stop Columbus’ SEC twin towers. Tatyana Wyatt (Kentucky) had 26 points, 13 rebounds and 2 blocks while Ariyah Copeland (Alabama) posted 11 points, 17 rebounds and 4 blocks. Brittany Floyd added 11 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks.

(B) St. Pius 87, Sandy Creek 68: Carson Seramur finished with 22 points — 10 in the fourth — and 5 rebounds while Everett Lane added 17 points and Matt Gonzalo scored 13 to power the Golden Lions into the state championship, never trailing after taking a 15-2 lead to open the game. KJ Wilkins led Sandy Creek with 18 points and 5 rebounds. Evan Jester pitched in 14 points.

(G) Carver-Columbus 60, Cross Creek 56: Mariah Igus had 18, Alycia Reese 15 and Mya Millner scored 11 to lead Carver-Columbus. Alana Davis finished her career with 31 points, 12 rebounds and 2 blocks.

(B) Upson-Lee 74, Henry County 59: While Tye Fagan struggled with foul trouble, picking up his fourth at the 1:15 mark of the third quarter, the rest of the Knights picked up the slack. Travon Walker took advantage of a Kovi Tate-less Henry County frontline posting 16 points, 13 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals and 3 blocks. Zyrice Scott filled in 11 of his team-high 18 points in the fourth quarter. Jacorey Smith added 10 points and 9 rebounds and Cameron Traylor notched 9 points. Fagan finished with 14 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists, 4 steals and 1 block. Henry County was led by Javon Greene’s 24 points, 6 rebounds, 6 steals and 1 block. Damion Rosser had 18 points and 6 rebounds while Seth Brown had 11 points, 7 rebounds and 1 block.

Class AAA

(G) Beach 56, GAC 47 OT: Judasia Hills made a statement, punishing GAC around the basket for 22 points and 15 rebounds. Jabreika Bass chipped in 11 points and 11 rebounds. The Spartans were led by Robyn Benton’s 15 and Taylor Sutton’s 12.

(B) Pace Academy 71, Liberty County 62: Wendell Carter (32 points & 17 rebounds) and Isaiah Kelly (20 points & 12 rebounds) overwhelmed Liberty County’s smaller front court. Will Richardson scored 28 and Davion Mitchell finished with 19.

(G) Johnson-Savannah 48, Morgan County 39: Alexis Pierce (16), Bubbles Williams (9) and J’mya Cutter (8) led the Atomsmashers.

(B) Morgan County 72, Calhoun 61: Chapin Rierson scored 26 points in defeat. Tyrin Lawrence scored 21 points followed by Alec Woodard and Anthony Cooper’s 13 points apiece for the Bulldogs. Damarian Thomas added 10.

Class AA

(G) Laney 65, Model 49: Jaiden Hamilton scored 19 points while De’sha Benjamin netted 18 and Jazmine Bartlett added 14 in the win for the Wildcats. Victaria Saxton scored 21 in the loss.

(B) Swainsboro 68, Dublin 64: Jaylan McKinney pumped in 30 points to lead the Tigers past Dublin. Kameron Pauldo scored 27 for Dublin.

(G) Rabun County 65, Bleckley County 37: Georgia Stockton netted 18 points and Savanna Scott scored 14 and added 7 rebounds and 5 steals. Brooke Henricks scored 14.

(B) South Atlanta 61, Josey 50: Jalen Stegall led the Hornets with 22 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Dominique Hurst had 17 for Josey.

Class A-Private

(G) Holy Innocents’ 63, St. Francis 61: Taja Cummings dropped in 22 points, but St. Francis was stunned by Holy Innocents’, handing the Knights their first in state loss. Nichel Tampa scored 15, Kasi Kushkituah 12 and Maya Dodson 6. Holy Innocents’ received 18 points from Khayla Pointer and 16 from Kaila Hubbard.

(B) Greenforest 86, St. Francis 56: David Quimby and Bebe Iyiola scored 18 apiece. Justin Forrest added 13. Ikey Obiagu triple-doubled with 10 points, 11 rebounds and 12 blocks. St. Francis was led by Chase Ellis (14), Ben Jones (12) and Dwon Odom (10).

(G) Wesleyan 77, Lakeview Academy 35: Mikayla Coombs was too much for the Lions, posting 28 points and 9 rebounds. Amaya Register added 15 points and Katie Stipe scored 10.

(B) SACA 77, Lakeview Academy 74: DeAundrae Ballard was the X-Factor, erupting for 41 points in the Warriors’ win. Lakeview was led by Tre Gober’s 22 points and Drew Cottrell’s 18. Josh Randolph scored 11 and Evan Pitts netted 10.

Class A-Public

(G) Telfair County 62, Woodville-Tompkins 60: In the loss, the Wolverines received 24 points and 10 rebounds from Savanna Walker. LaNaya El-Amin posted 15 points and 16 rebounds. Jazmin Grayson had 7 points and 7 rebounds.

(B) Wilkinson County 60, Macon County 47: Clarence Jackson had 10 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists in the win.

(G) Pelham 81, Wheeler County 67: Destiny Thomas poured in 26 points and Mahogany Randall added 21 for the Hornets. Mahogany Brown had 11. Brianna Horton led the Bulldogs with 13.

(B) Calhoun County 54, Clinch County 50: Rashun Williams scored 10 points and Kadarrius Holmes added 13. Edwin Wims had 9.

Spielin’ & Dealin’ Ep. 10: Boys Final Four Preview

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After a wild week of “upsets” the GHSA boys Final Four is set. Some teams rose to the occasion while others wilted. Here’s a game-by-game preview of every Final Four matchup this Saturday.

Boys Elite Eight Results

Class AAAAAAA

R8 #3 Grayson 73, R7 #4 Brookwood 51
R7 #1 Norcross 82, R2 #1 Pebblebrook 60

R1 #1 Tift County 75, R8 #1 Newton 66
R3 #1 McEachern 75, R2 #3 Wheeler 60

Class AAAAAA

R6 #2 South Cobb 40, R5 #1 South Paulding 37
R2 #1 Brunswick 64, R1 #2 Northside-Warner Robins 54

R5 #3 Langston Hughes 72, R8 #1 Gainesville 69 OT
R6 #1 Allatoona 63, R5 #2 Tri-Cities 54

Class AAAAA

R5 #1 Miller Grove 59, R6 #2 Riverwood 43
R8 #2 Cedar Shoals 59, R5 #4 Lithonia 52

R8 #1 Buford 94, R1 #1 Warner Robins 72
R3 #1 Fayette County 65, R6 #1 Carver-Atlanta 52

Class AAAA

R4 #1 Henry County 62, R5 #1 LaGrange 61
R2 #1 Upson-Lee 70, R3 #3 Thomson 56

R8 #1 St. Pius 64, R1 #1 Carver-Columbus 60
R5 #2 Sandy Creek 80, R2 #3 Perry 60

Class AAA

R5 #1 Pace Academy 53, R4 #1 Westside-Macon 50 2OT
R2 #1 Liberty County 89, R3 #3 Islands 72

R8 #1 Morgan County 70, R5 #3 Lovett 49
R6 #1 Calhoun 65, R3 #1 Jenkins 60

Class AA

R3 #2 Dublin 73, R4 #1 Laney 59
R2 #1 Swainsboro 64, R7 #1 Chattooga 61

R4 #3 Josey 71, R1 #1 Early County 58
R6 #1 South Atlanta 75, R3 #1 Washington County 69 OT

Class A-Private

#1 Greenforest 89, #9 Holy Innocents’ 55
#5 St. Francis 63, #4 Aquinas 48

#2 Lakeview Academy 63, #7 Athens Christian 55
#6 Southwest Atlanta Christian 64, #3 North Cobb Christian 53

Class A-Public

#8 Macon County 67, #1 Treutlen 62
#5 Wilkinson County 63, #4 Taylor County 35

#2 Calhoun County 73, #7 Turner County 65
#3 Clinch County 72, #6 Montgomery County 62