Category Archives: Game Stories

Game Stories, GHSA, GHSA Basketball

No. 2 Lithonia clinches Region 6 title with win on Senior Night

No. 2 Lithonia 56, No. 3 St. Pius 48

It was Senior Night for the No. 2 Lithonia Bulldogs. Parents, friends, family, balloons and flowers filled the court after the girls game as all the senior basketball players and cheerleaders took to the court. It was an emotional night, but there was still work to be done. First-place in Region 6-AAAA was on the line, a region that boasts the top 2-4 ranked teams in the state. With both Lithonia (18-4, 15-1) and No. 3 St. Pius (18-4, 12-3) beating No. 4 Grady (19-3, 13-2) in their second meetings, the Bulldogs now had the inside track to winning the regular season title if they could stop St. Pius.

In a nip-and-tuck game which saw the largest lead of the first half come in the form of a 4-0 Golden Lions start, Lithonia used a big third quarter to take control and hold on for a 56-48 win, all but ensuring themselves the region title in the regular season and the No. 1 seed heading into the region tournament.

The first quarter ended knotted up at 14, but one Bulldog showed more bite than usual on the big stage. Rodney Chatman, a senior guard committed to UT-Chattanooga, hasn’t been known for his scoring, usually taking a backseat to the likes of Tyheem Freeman, Jacara Cross and Tyleen Patterson, instead working to get those teammates open looks. Friday night however, was Chatman’s time to shine.

Chatman scored nine points in the first eight minutes, but he was just getting started. Jakob Spitzer hammered in a dunk to give the Golden Lions a 14-11 lead, but Chatman drilled a three at the buzzer.

It took nearly four minutes for Lithonia to score its first points of the second quarter. Once the lid was off the basket, Freeman, who scored 16 points, hit Robert Hatchett in the corner for three to take a 20-17 lead. Forty seconds later, Kerney Lane found younger brother Everett for three to knot the game back up. Lithonia entered halftime up 24-22 with the game still in the balance.

It wasn’t for long.

Coach Wallace Corker’s Bulldogs opened the third on an 11-3 run sparked by Cross. The 6-foot-7 big man posted 18 points and 12 rebounds in their previous meeting, a 55-44 win over the Golden Lions, but through the first half on Friday, he was held scoreless with two fouls. Chatman got him going, like a good point would. He lobbed an alley-oop to Cross for his first points of the game and after a wild scramble on defense, the Bulldogs came up with the loose ball. The ball was pitched ahead to Freeman who attacked the basket and dumped the ball off behind him to a trailing Cross who collected it and flushed it home to take a 35-25 lead with 3:34 left in the third, causing Coach Aaron Parr to burn a timeout.

Twelve seconds later, Cross picked up his fourth foul when Everett Lane pump-faked him inside, sending him and momentum to the bench.

St. Pius chipped away at the lead and cut it to 35-28 after a Kerney Lane bucket, but Chatman answered yet again with a three-ball.

The Golden Lions split a pair of Spitzer free throws with 1.1 seconds left and sent themselves into the fourth quarter down 38-29.

The fourth quarter belonged to Kerney Lane as he tried to will his team back into the game. Lane scored three straight buckets for the Golden Lions, sparked by a rebound off a Spitzer missed free throw, powering the ball back up for two. With 6:03 left, St. Pius trailed 41-35. Lane scored nine of the Golden Lions’ first 10 points in the quarter, but Chatman and Freeman were too much.

Chatman scored eight of his game-high 24 points in the fourth quarter while Freeman netted six to his tally. Sam Petry came off the bench to hit three late three-pointers for St. Pius, but it was too little too late as the Bulldogs reigned supreme on Senior Night.

My Take: Lithonia is one of the best teams in the state, and I don’t think I’ve seen them play their best game yet. Rodney Chatman and Tyheem Freeman were sensational for Coach Corker. Chatman has played the role of distributor all season long, but showed he can fill it up when he goes in attack mode, finishing with 24 points, six rebounds and three assists. Freeman is a great running mate alongside Chatman. Jacara Cross is an immense talent inside, making things look easy at times, but he is too susceptible to foul trouble and can be taken out of his game. Lithonia has as good a chance as anyone to make a deep state playoff run and win the state title, but if they want to do that, Cross cannot pick up silly fouls and have to sit on the bench. Tyleen Patterson, Lithonia’s second option in the post, is a reliable scorer, but he picked up two dumb fouls as well that luckily didn’t cost Lithonia. Pushing a player after a Bulldog basket and then next trip down, grabbing a rebound and throwing a blatant elbow while carving out space. The little things like that might not hurt you in the regular season, but come playoff time it will be something that needs cleaned up.

St. Pius had one of its worst shooting nights of the year. The Golden Lions left 10 big points at the line, shooting just 9-of-19. Their defense was able to keep them in the game however. It was just one big 11-3 run for Lithonia in the third quarter that gave the Bulldogs enough cushion. Kerney Lane took over in the fourth quarter for the Golden Lions, but couldn’t find enough help as the Bulldogs’ physical defense made St. Pius work for every hoop. Without Sam Petry’s three late threes, the score would have been a lot worse. Outside of Petry’s shooting, the Golden Lions weren’t able to stretch out Lithonia’s defense, hitting just two three-pointers. In the first half, St. Pius proved they can play with anyone in the state and warrant the No. 3 spot in AAAA. It was a tough night to struggle from the field, but the Lions should get another crack at the Bulldogs when it matters the most, in the region tournament.

Top Performers

Lithonia
Rodney Chatman – 24 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal
Tyheem Freeman – 16 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks
Tyleen Patterson – 7 points, 5 rebounds
Jacara Cross – 4 points, 5 rebounds, 1 block

St. Pius
Kerney Lane – 19 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks
Sam Petry – 9 points
Christian Merrill – 7 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals
Jakob Spitzer – 5 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block

Feature Photo By Mark Brock (DCSD)

Game Stories, GHSA, GHSA Basketball

No. 5 Newton rams Tucker out of first-place in Region 2

No. 5 Newton 58, Tucker 48

It had been 719 days since the Tucker Tigers (17-5, 7-1) had last lost a region game. A 45-42 loss to Stephenson on Feb. 7, 2014 back in Class AAAAA was Coach James Hartry’s last defeat. Last season the Tigers swept through their new home, Region 2-AAAAAA, and through the first seven region games of this season, they had started 7-0, surviving No. 5 Newton 57-56 at Tucker on Dec. 15.

Newton (19-2, 7-1), enjoying its best start since 2009-10 when the Rams opened 30-1 before falling to state champion Milton in the semifinals, entered Wednesday’s make-up game at 18-2, using last season’s state playoff run as a springboard into the 2015-16 season. As a No. 4 seed last year, the Rams knocked off defending state champion Tift County 52-49 in round one and took down No. 2 seed Dacula 58-54 in the Sweet 16 before falling to eventual state champion Wheeler in the Elite 8, 72-54.

With all of Coach Rick Rasmussen’s recent success with the Rams, one win still eluded Newton: Tucker. Last night, the Rams were finally able to rid themselves of their demons and get the monkey off their back with a 58-48 win at home to take over first-place.

“It was a big win for us tonight,” explained Rasmussen. “I thought we had a really good chance to beat them at their place and I thought we were certainly capable of playing better than we did the first time.”

They did.

Things didn’t start out so promising for the Rams however. Tucker jumped out to a 9-2 lead and looked like the more energized team, but Newton’s leading scorer, junior JD Notae, shook the Rams out of the doldrums and scored their first eight points of the game.

To end the first period, freshman sensation Ashton Hagans drove on the fastbreak and found senior Jaquan Simms open in the left corner for one of his four three-pointers on the night to give Newton a 13-11 lead heading into the second quarter.

The onslaught continued for the Rams in the second quarter as Notae’s early spurt in the first quarter ignited a 21-4 Newton run that flipped the score from a 9-2 deficit to a 23-13 advantage with 3:55 left to play in the second quarter. Tucker would pick itself off the mat and end the period on a mini 5-2 run, capped by a Tyler Payne steal and lay-in at the buzzer, cutting Newton’s halftime lead to 25-18.

The third quarter saw Tucker senior center Adonis Green score back-to-back baskets but halfway through the frame Green picked up his fourth foul. Coach Hartry elected to keep him in the game and just 15 seconds later, Green committed his fifth personal, fouling out with 2:52 remaining in the third quarter and the Tigers trailing 33-26.

While Tucker was searching for answers on how to replace Green, but more importantly slow down Newton’s guards, Jaquan Simms caught fire, canning back-to-back threes and drawing a foul on a deep ball. Simms scored eight of his 16 points in the third quarter and pushed the Rams’ lead to 38-26.

However, once again it was Tucker using a late spurt to keep the game close. The Tigers ran off four quick points stamped by Kenton Eskridge’s lay-up right before the horn to make it a 38-30 game entering the fourth quarter.

Tucker did not crawl much closer than eight points in the fourth quarter as Notae and Dante Johnson would not allow another late game disappointment. In their first meeting, the Rams blew the game at the line, connecting on just 7-of-18 attempts. Wednesday night, Newton sank 14-of-22 free throws, but more importantly 12-of-17 in the fourth quarter. Notae scored 11 of his game-high 22 points in the fourth including going 5-of-6 from the stripe while Johnson netted six of his eight points in the final frame, hitting all four free throws.

After a hot start for Eskridge, scoring six first quarter points, the Rams honed in on Tucker’s playmaker and held him to four points over the next three periods.

Freshman Ashton Hagans won the war with junior Kenton Eskridge
Freshman Ashton Hagans won the war with junior Kenton Eskridge

The win was an important one for Newton, not only for region seeding, but for the overall psyche of the team, finally beating a program that has troubled them over the past two seasons. Coach Rasmussen understands there is still work to be done on Friday night as Newton hosts rival Rockdale County on senior night and the Tigers potentially looming in the region tournament.

“It feels good to get this one. I’m sure we’re going to have to play them again in the region tournament, so I’m sure that will be another war and we’re excited about it.”

My Take: Newton’s guards are the real deal. People who aren’t in the know could have given me slack for keeping the Rams in the top ten after an early 2-1 start following a loss to Henry County, but I had faith that Newton would warrant its place in the rankings. Fast forward eight weeks later and Coach Rick Rasmussen’s team is No. 5 in the poll. JD Notae has caught the eye of D-1 schools such as Kennesaw State, South Alabama and Presbyterian and all for good reason. The junior had two scoring binges. One to breathe life into the Rams and the second to close the door shut on Tucker. Notae scored the first eight points of the game to start a 21-4 run that gave Newton the lead for good and in the fourth quarter his 11 points ended all hope of a Tucker comeback. Notae showed an ability to finish inside with reverse lay ups and the coolness to sink important free throws late in the game. Freshman Ashton Hagans has some of the best court vision I’ve seen this season. It is extremely rare to see a point guard with that kind of court presence and the fact that he is only a freshman makes him a high major prospect for good reason; UGA has already offered, with Tennessee, Mississippi State and Auburn all showing interest. In last night’s low scoring game, he didn’t need to dazzle or show off any slick eye-catching passes like a Will Washington, but he was mature with the ball and put it in the right spots for teammates to score, something that can’t always be taught. The third man of the trio was senior Jaquan Simms. He cashed in four three-pointers and finished with 16 points. His ability to get hot from behind the arc will be invaluable come tournament time. With sophomore DeAndrae Butler missing from the lineup, Josh Tukes and Chazz Tanner stepped up and combined for four points and 10 rebounds. Dante Johnson was a key piece off the bench with eight points and nine rebounds, bringing great energy.

Xavier Johnson played well for Tucker in the absence of Adonis Green, who fouled out with four points and six rebounds. Johnson posted team-highs of 12 points and nine rebounds. Kenton Eskridge got going early on, putting his head down and finishing at the cup, but Newton made the proper adjustments to slow down the junior. The Tigers had some nice balance scoring, but weren’t able to find enough firepower to keep up with the running Rams.

Top Performers

Newton
JD Notae – 22 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals
Jaquan Simms – 16 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
Dante Johnson – 8 points, 9 rebounds
Ashton Hagans – 7 points, 1 rebound, 8 assists, 3 steals
Chazz Tanner – 4 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 1 block

Tucker
Xavier Johnson – 12 points, 9 rebounds, 1 block
Kenton Eskridge – 10 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 2 blocks
Amir Butcher – 7 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block
Josh Vann – 6 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist
Trevon Flowers – 6 points, 1 rebound
Adonis Green – 4 points, 6 rebounds

Game Stories, GHSA, GHSA Basketball

All-American Alterique Gilbert’s fourth quarter stops No. 9 Southwest DeKalb comeback

No. 1 Miller Grove 53, No. 9 Southwest DeKalb 45

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A 15-5 run had No. 1 Miller Grove seemingly on the ropes after taking its largest lead of the game 43-30 entering the fourth, but when the Wolverines needed a hoop, they turned to none other than McDonalds All-American and UConn signee Alterique Gilbert to answer the call as Miller Grove held off host No. 9 Southwest DeKalb in front of a capacity crowd, 53-45.

Southwest DeKalb looked to establish 6-foot-6, 245-pound senior TiQuan Lewis early on. The Washington County transfer posed problems inside for the slighter Wolverines in their first meeting, posting 19 points and 12 rebounds in a 76-69 loss. On Tuesday, the big man scored the Panthers’ first seven points of the game but was held to two points the rest of the way as Miller Grove began digging down and harassing Lewis with active hands.

While Lewis got Southwest DeKalb off to a quick start, Aaron Augustin began his own scoring spree, slashing to the basket and showing off his outside shot to finish with seven of his 10 points in the first quarter, giving the Wolverines a 15-10 lead after one.

Augustin sank his final basket of the night, a three-pointer at the 4:06 mark of the second quarter to push the Wolverine lead out to 21-14. Southwest DeKalb leading scorer Keith Gilmore scored just one point in the first quarter but began to find the bottom of the net while it looked like the Panthers were about to lose distance with the Wolverines. The senior scored nine of his team-high 16 points in the second period, but the Panthers still entered the half trailing Miller Grove 34-22.

To open the second half, Southwest DeKalb made sure to not stray away from the inside game, feeding it to Lewis early on, but Miller Grove caused him to fumble away a few opportunities with its pressure defense.  He and Gilmore combined for 17 of the Panthers’ 22 first half points meaning someone else had to step up. While Southwest searched for a third option in the third quarter, Miller Grove slowly began to pull away.

TiQuan Lewis is a big boy
TiQuan Lewis is a big boy

Aidan Saunders received a pass in transition and threw down a dunk, the first of the game, to extend the lead to 41-30. Seconds after the gym-rocking slam, the student sections of both teams began to get into it, causing a five-minute stop in the action while teachers and police went into the crowd to make sure nothing got out of hand. After the brief stoppage, Miller Grove added another hoop to give itself a 13-point cushion heading into the final eight minutes.

Instead of rolling over and letting the Wolverines blow them out of their own gym, the Panthers showed some bite of their own. A long and methodical comeback began to take place with Southwest using its helter skelter tempo and press to force Miller Grove into rushed shots and turnovers. Coach Eugene Brown finally found his third and fourth scoring options as Nathaniel Ambersley scored six of his 11 points in the fourth while Mandarius Dickerson added nine points in the game.

With 1:10 remaining, Gilmore caught a feed down low and went baseline to lay it up and claw the Panthers within 48-45. Seconds later at the 48.5 mark, Gilbert answered with an And-1 to make it 51-45 and stem the tide. The All-American poured in nine of Miller Grove’s 10 fourth quarter points and took over when Coach Sharman White needed him the most.

29.2 seconds remained when Coach White called a timeout. The Wolverines attempted to inbound the ball, but an offensive foul was called, giving the ball back to the Panthers still down six. Southwest DeKalb was unable to score, but forced a turnover with 15 seconds left. Gilmore had the ball on what looked like a 3-on-1 fast break, but instead of trying to get the bucket and play the fouling game, he elected to attempt a pull-up three which missed and resulted in a rebound and outlet for a Gilbert run-out dunk with seconds left to end the game.

Missed opportunities hurt the Panthers, especially as they entered the bonus with 5:26 left in the fourth, but made only 1-of-5 from the line and finished 8-of-16 for the game.

My Take: If you didn’t get to Southwest DeKalb by halftime of the girls’ game, you weren’t getting a seat. I strolled in right as the game was finishing up and there were no seats to be found. The action that ensued on the court warranted the crowd. Miller Grove looked like the top team in the state, coming away with a huge win in a wild environment. The Wolverines look to push the ball every chance they get and have some of the best spacing I’ve seen all year with shooters peppering the perimeter. Alterique Gilbert didn’t have his best game, missing some open threes, but he would not be denied when the game was on the line. Aaron Augustin had a big first half with 10 points but didn’t score in the second. He along with Gilbert were able to hit open men. The pair made everyone around them better tonight. The Wolverines are a very unselfish bunch and play for one another even with all the stars on their roster. They came away with 11 steals hounding the Southwest DeKalb guards, especially in the first half holding Darius Hogan, Mandarius Dickerson and Nathaniel Ambersley to five total first half points, with Hogan never cracking the scorebook on the night after scoring 12 against Miller Grove in their first meeting.

Southwest DeKalb showed a lot of heart, scrapping to get back into the game. TiQuan Lewis is a load inside and can punish smaller defenders. Keith Gilmore was the senior leader I expected him to be, finishing with 16 points and 12 rebounds. If Coach Brown can get guard production around those two, the Panthers will be a tough team in the state tournament. The glaring issue for the Panthers was a lack of pure shooting. They made just one three-pointer on the night and shot 50% from the foul line. Missed free throws and Hogan’s quiet game came back to bite Southwest. Hogan is the team’s best shooter from deep, averaging over two makes a game and hitting 40%.

Top Performers

Miller Grove
Alterique Gilbert – 17 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals
Aaron Augustin – 10 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals
Raylon Richardson – 7 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 1 block
Aidan Saunders – 7 points
Joshua Jackmon – 5 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists
Tae Hardy – 4 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals

Southwest DeKalb
Keith Gilmore – 16 points, 12 rebounds, 1 assist
Nathaniel Ambersley – 11 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
TiQuan Lewis – 9 points, 10 rebounds, 1 block
Mandarius Dickerson – 9 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks

Game Stories, GHSA, GHSA Basketball

Double-tech does in No. 4 Gainesville at No. 3 Wheeler

No. 3 Wheeler 82, No. 4 Gainesville 69

D'Marcus Simonds was TwoSpicee at times for Wheeler
D’Marcus Simonds was TwoSpicee at times for Wheeler

A controversial double-technical spoiled what was an outstanding game on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, as No. 3 Wheeler held off No. 4 Gainesville 82-69.

Gainesville (11-4) entered with just one actual loss and two via forfeit at Lanierland while Wheeler (14-5) strolled in with five straight wins. The litmus test that followed was as stiff as any in the state could face; the feisty Red Elephants at the six-time state champs, highlighted by last season’s 6A title team.

Wheeler entered the game without Cam Jordan at forward, leaving much work to do for the supporting cast. The Wildcats got everything and more from Makhai Eastmond and Kenny Aninye. Eastmond scored 13 points – nine in the first half – while Aninye netted 14 and grabbed six rebounds in his new found starting role. The 13-point final score was not a reflection of how the game unfolded however.

Georgia State signee D’Marcus Simonds started the three-point barrage by hitting Messiah Dorsey to open the game. The Red Elephants sank five threes in the opening period, two apiece via Michael White and Dorsey. Gainesville would finish with seven triples in the first half, but only added one more to the tally in the second half.

While the Elephants were bombing from deep, Darius Perry and unsung hero Makhai Eastmond kept the Wildcats afloat. Perry scored seven of his game-high 21 in the opening period while Eastmond hit two threes to help the ‘Cats head into the second quarter down 19-18.

Darius Perry made all the big plays when Wheeler needed them
Darius Perry made all the big plays when Wheeler needed them

Wheeler opened the second quarter on a quick 7-0 spurt and at the 6:12 mark now up 25-19 after taking their first lead of the game with 7:11 to play, Simonds picked up his third foul. The Wildcats extended their run to 16-to-4 before Simonds checked back in, the Elephants now trailing 34-23 with 3:50 remaining in the first half. Everything seemed to click whenever Simonds was on the floor and while Georgia Tech signee Romello White took a breather on the bench, Gainesville began to attack the basket. Tae Turner, who scored all 10 of his points in the first half, drove for an And-1 and cut the Wildcat lead to 36-30 with 2:06 left.

Momentum swung back into Wheeler’s favor when Perry drilled a straight away three at the buzzer to give the host Wildcats a 43-36 edge heading into the half.

With Simonds back on the floor, Gainesville made another push. He threw down a dunk in transition then added another bucket in the open floor to make it 47-44 before picking up his fourth foul 30 seconds later at the 4:31 mark.

The pesky Eastmond hit a jumper to stabilize things for Wheeler and would spark an 11-5 run to open up a 58-49 lead with 1:29 to play in the third. Then Simonds checked in. The 6-foot-4 guard willed his team back into the game. Within seconds of re-entering, Simonds picked up an assist, hitting Dorsey for a three and then picked Eastmond’s pocket for a layup to bring the score to 60-54. With seconds remaining and Wheeler holding for a last shot, Simonds played the passing lane, picked off a pass and exploded for a thunderous two-handed jam right before the horn to close the gap to 60-58 entering the fourth. His return to the floor ignited an 11-0 run and gave the Red Elephants all the momentum early in the final period as Gainesville had finally caught up to the Wildcats after Simonds came away with another theft up front and boomed home another slam.

On the next possession, Wheeler was sent to the line. The crowd and Simonds still amped up about the dunk, during the free throw attempts on the other side of the court Eastmond and Simonds were jawing. Simonds, known for his fiery play and emotions, finished the back-and-forth with Eastmond and began walking up to the other side of the floor to get ready for the second free throw. While Simonds approached the play, Eastmond followed close behind… a little too close for the referees as they blew a double-technical. With the game tied at 60 with 7:30 remaining and in the midst of an 11-0 run, Simonds was fouled out on the tech.

Simonds’ final line in limited action read: 14 points, four rebounds, six assists and five steals. With the playmaker fouling out, Gainesville had to turn to Dorsey and Michael White. The two combined for nine points in the quarter, but Gainesville would be outscored 22-to-9 with Simonds fouled out.

Anyine scored five consecutive points to push Wheeler’s lead to 71-67 with 2:54 remaining before Romello White finally began to wear down the smaller Elephant frontline. He scored back-to-back And-1s and sparked a 14-2 run to end the game.

My Take: Gainesville looked as if it were going to live and die by the three-pointer early on in the game but the Red Elephants kept coming even with D’Marcus Simonds saddled with foul trouble. A lack of elite size inside hurt Gainesville, who used a frontline of 6-foot-5 and 6-foot-6 to try and counter Romello White’s legit 6-foot-8. Sophomore KJ Buffen, who is more of a three, battled valiantly alongside fellow sophomore Bailey Minor against White. Buffen showed flashes offensively with his 12 points, but struggled from the line going 4-of-11 including 0-for-4 in the fourth quarter. Michael White and Messiah Dorsey stretched the defense with their shooting and are great pieces around Simonds. Tae Turner played well with 10 points in the first half, but went scoreless in the second half. Minor blocked four shots, but was never able to establish himself offensively on the low block. Simonds was the best player on the floor today with his explosiveness and quick hands. His plus/minus numbers were through the roof. You take the good with the bad with the caliber of player he is. Some people might classify him as a hot-head with his demeanor on the court, but I liked his emotion and didn’t think any of it was over the top. To be blunt, the referees really botched the double-technical. It didn’t look as if any stern warnings were given and they blew the whistle on a costly interaction which took place in the heat of the moment. Gainesville deserves its top five ranking and will be a scary team to deal with in the AAAAA state tournament.

Wheeler found a way to win without Cam Jordan. As good as Simonds was, Perry was just as good but without the flash. He consistently got big buckets for the Wildcats and went 8-of-8 from the line. Game-ball might have to go to Makhai Eastmond. He is the weakest link for Wheeler but he stepped up big time and played one of his best games, hitting two big threes in the first quarter while Gainesville was on fire and later on baiting Simonds into his fifth foul. Kenny Aninye also played a great game and picked his spots when to attack. His 5-point spurt in the fourth helped give the Wildcats the lead for good. Romello White slammed the door shut with his size as Wheeler began to pound it down low. White posted back-to-back And-1s in the fourth, with the first coming the hard way, cleaning up a miss and powering up strong. He scored 10 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter and finished 5-of-8 from the line for the game. Al-Wajid Aminu didn’t have a ton of jaw dropping plays, but boy does the North Florida signee have a motor that doesn’t quit. He is always around the ball when it comes off the rim and is a glue guy that does the little things on defense. He finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

Top Performers

Wheeler
Darius Perry – 21 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists
Romello White – 15 points, 15 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 2 blocks
Kenny Aninye – 14 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal
Makhai Eastmond – 13 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist
Al-Wajid Aminu – 11 points, 10 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block

Gainesville
D’Marcus Simonds – 14 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 steals
Michael White – 14 points, 6 rebounds, 1 block
Messiah Dorsey – 14 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists
KJ Buffen – 12 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block
Tae Turner – 10 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 1 steal
Bailey Minor – 5 points, 4 rebounds, 1 steal, 4 blocks

Game Stories, GHSA, GHSA Basketball

No. 1 Morgan County handles East Jackson

*Guest contribution from Colin Hubbard (@__Chubs__)

No. 1 Morgan County 75, East Jackson 56

The Morgan County Bulldogs (15-3, 7-0) have been a powerhouse in AAA high school basketball for quite some time now, but their 2015-16 squad could be their best team yet. After knocking off the No.1 ranked Laney Wildcats last week, the Bulldogs moved into the No.1 spot and hosted an up-and-coming East Jackson (9-8, 4-3) team on Friday that was hungry for a statement win. Morgan County and East Jackson have been the class of Region 8 for the past two seasons but the Eagles had never beaten them in that time span.

The Bulldogs are led by Florida Atlantic signees Jailyn Ingram and DeVorious Brown while the Eagles are powered by the sophomore trio of Drue Drinnon, Travis Anderson and Jalen Morgan.

FAU signee DeVorious Brown went for 27 against previously undefeated Laney
FAU signee DeVorious Brown went for 27 against previously undefeated Laney

Ingram, who is also a tremendous football player, elected to take his talents to Boca Raton to continue his basketball career and his decision to do so seems to be playing dividends.

Drinnon on the other hand is the Class of 2018’s No.1 ranked combo guard according to Future 150 and has already eclipsed the 1,000-point mark in less than two seasons. In East Jackson’s 81-58 win over rival Jefferson last week, all three of the Eagles’ trio scored 20 or more points before heading into a much-anticipated rematch with the Bulldogs.

Despite a strong effort to start the game, Morgan County was the better team on the night and picked up a 75-56 win to remain undefeated in Region 8.

“We knew coming in that they (East Jackson) were going to come out with a lot of energy so we knew what to expect,” Morgan County Head Coach Jamond Sims said. “We had our hands full with Drinnon in the first half but in the second half we were able to keep him in front of us and that helped us close out the game.”

“The team goes as Jailyn goes and when he wants to assert himself and be the best player on the floor, the rest of our team’s confidence goes up,” Sims said. “Whenever he catches the ball within 18 feet of the basket, he can pretty much shoot over anyone out there so he’s a big part of our success.”

The start couldn’t have been better for the Eagles after jumping out to a 12-4 lead but costly turnovers gave the Bulldogs a 1-point lead after the first quarter, 16-15.

Drinnon and Anderson combined to score 10 of the Eagles’ 15 while the Bulldogs got nine from Jordan Ford.

Travis Anderson | Photo By Ben Munro
Travis Anderson | Photo By Ben Munro

The second quarter did not start out the way East Jackson would have liked and quickly the Eagles found themselves in an 10-point hole midway through the quarter. However, hot shooting from Drinnon cut the Bulldogs’ lead to 41-35 at the half.

Drinnon scored 15 of the Eagles’ 20 points in the second quarter and led all contestants with 20 points at the half on 8-of-8 shooting while Ford added two more to lead the Bulldogs with 11 points.

The Bulldogs found their rhythm in the third quarter and dominated in all facets of the game. Ingram netted eight points in the period and helped build Morgan County’s lead to 61-46 heading into the fourth.

The Eagles managed to cut the Bulldogs’ lead to 10 points midway through the fourth quarter but that was the closest they could get. Ingram proved to be too big for the smaller East Jackson frontline and finished with 20 points on the night.

Drinnon poured in a game-high 28 points on 11-of-13 shooting, dished out seven assists and collected four steals.

“We were doing fine at the start but they (Morgan County) started pressing us and that caused us to have a lot of stupid turnovers,” Drinnon said.

“We didn’t rebound the ball. They out rebounded us just like every other team we play so we need to work on rebounding and be safer with the ball going forward.”

Ingram on the other hand was very pleased with the way they played and is excited to see where the Bulldogs are headed.

“We have a lot of experience in playing in tough games so we knew that we would be ready for this one,” Ingram said. “We use all of our games as a learning experience and playing a team like East Jackson helps us going forward.”

Jailyn Ingram was too much inside for East Jackson
Jailyn Ingram was too much inside for East Jackson

East Jackson head coach David Boyd has spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to beat what has become the Eagles’ biggest thorn in their side but has yet to find an answer.

“They are hard to beat and I haven’t figured it out yet,” Boyd said. “I think they have the best team in AAA right now with the amount of length they have. Some of our newer guys that came out for the second semester got introduced to high-level basketball for the first time but we will keep fighting and hopefully get to play them again in the region tournament.”

Colin’s Take: East Jackson arguably has the best young backcourt in all of AAA but their inability to rebound has really held them back. Jalen Morgan, who has played in just three games after transferring from New Hope Christian Academy (NC), gives them the best option down low to rebound the ball but still needs time to get acclimated to East Jackson’s system. While they might not find a rebounding answer this season, they are well on their way to becoming a well-known AAA powerhouse next season and have a great shot at competing for a state championship in the very near future.

Morgan County doesn’t have a weakness. They have three players over 6-foot-6, they run the floor as good as anyone and they can shoot the basketball with ease. Their size and strength wear teams down late in games which gives them a great chance at getting back to the state championship game later this year. If you haven’t watched Morgan County play, then you’re missing out. They play like a Class AAAAAA team and could easily contend in a division of that magnitude.