CLASS 6A
Saturday, March 1 at Georgia State
R5 #1 No. 2 Wheeler 68, R4 #1 No. 1 Grayson 53: Wheeler (28-3) avenged a 77-68 loss to Grayson (28-3), stunning the Rams holding them to 21 points in the second half. Kevin Savage (18), Mansur McClain (16) and Ole Miss-signee Tylis Jordan (14) paced the Wildcats. Grayson received 18 points from Caleb Holt, 13 from Cal State Fullerton-signee Kiwane Garris and 6 points from UGA-singee Jacob Wilkins.
R4 #2 No. 6 Newton 56, R3 #2 No. 9 Pebblebrook 53: Dead in the water, Pebblebrook (22-9) went on an 8-0 run over a 31-second span to trim the Newton (22-9) lead to 53-51 with 20 seconds left on Zyree Brown’s fifth three-pointer of the game but Newton was able to hit just enough free throws to ice it as a halfcourt heave rimmed off the front iron. Jordan Green led Newton with 15 points. App State-signee Ted Neal netted 13 points and Marcus Smith II had 10. Brown led the Falcons with 16 points. Jaylen Humphrey scored 12 and Jayvion Nurse chipped in 10.
CLASS 5A
Friday, February 28 at Georgia State
R4 #1 No. 1 Woodward Academy 63, R3 #1 No. 9 Langston Hughes 58: Jarvis Hayes Jr. posted 18 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists while Clemson-signee Zac Foster recorded 18 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 block to lead Woodward Academy (27-4). Ethan Carter led Langston Hughes (24-9) with 20 points before fouling out. Jaron LaMelle added 10.
R4 #2 No. 2 Tri-Cities 75, R2 #1 No. 10 Lee County 63: Tri-Cities (25-6) advanced to the state championship for the fifth time in the past nine years, setting up a fourth meeting with region rival Woodward Academy. Georgia Southern-signee Sean Van Dorn and Tre Keith combined for 52 points.
CLASS 4A
Saturday, March 1 at Fort Valley State
R4 #1 No. 1 Pace Academy 76, R5 #1 No. 4 Tucker 40: Pace Academy (27-4) jumped out to a 9-0 lead and never trailed against Tucker (25-7), overwhelming the Tigers with their size and aggressive full court pressure. Chandler Bing posted 24 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists followed by Georgia Tech-signee Eric Chatfield’s 20 points and 5 rebounds. Hayden Clay scored 11 points. Freshman Bentley Lusakueno pitched in 9 points, 7 rebounds and 3 blocks. Jakobe Williams led Tucker with 13 points.
R8 #1 No. 2 North Oconee 70, R2 #1 No. 9 McDonough 60: North Oconee (29-2) staved off McDonough (25-6) to advance back to the state title game. Khamari Brooks posted 22 points followed by Justin Wise’s 20. Banks Pourchier tallied 17 points.
CLASS 3A
Friday, February 28 at Fort Valley State
#1 No. 3 Sandy Creek 71, #5 No. 8 Windsor Forest 42: Sandy Creek (28-3) advanced back to Macon with a chance for a three-peat. The Patriots led 14-0 to start. Kingston Hawkins scored 18 points followed by Jared White’s 15 and Avohn Florence’s 14. Amari Latimer chipped in 10.
#3 No. 1 Cedar Grove 53, #7 No. 10 Monroe 45: Cedar Grove (28-3) held off Monroe (21-10) to set up a 2023 state championship rematch with former region rival Sandy Creek. Manny Green led the Saints with 18 points and 9 rebounds while Yusef Bower netted 13 points, 9 assists and 4 steals. Keith Gillespie and Javonte Floyd scored 8 points each. Brayden Burns (17) and Lorenzo Still (13) paced Monroe.
CLASS 2A
Friday, February 28 at Georgia Southwestern
#4 No. 4 Butler 78, #1 No. 1 Carver-Columbus 73 OT: Butler (20-8) held down 27-3 Carver-Columbus’ high-powered offense just enough to clinch a berth in the state championship. After missing two free throws late in regulation, Carver’s Tony Mongomery, a Troy-signee, drilled a three with 7 seconds left to force overtime. The tandem of Denver-signee Marcus Scurry and Kwamane Bridges anchored the Bulldogs.
#6 No. 7 Union County 54, #2 Tattnall County 38: Union County (26-5) outscored Tattnall County (25-5) 22-10 in the third quarter behind Hayden Hughes’ four three-pointers in the frame. The Panthers held the Warriors to just 20 points in the second half. Houston Henry poured in 24 points while Hayden Hughes had 15. Maddox Young added 9. Justin McMillian powered Tattnall County with 21 points.
CLASS A D-I
Saturday, March 1 at Georgia College
#15 No. 3 BEST Academy 73, #14 No. 10 East Laurens 58: BEST Academy (24-7) took control in the second half to eliminate East Laurens (20-8) to advance to their first ever trip to the state championship. Nick Dozier (20), Jacob Mickell (17), Xion Evans (16) and Josh Mickell (14) all reached double digits.
#1 No. 2 Southwest-Macon 65, #5 Toombs County 54: Southwest-Macon (27-2) will have a home game at the Macon Centreplex in search of their seventh state title, first since 1989. The Patriots slowly extended their lead against Toombs County (18-12), who got hot at the end of the season and falls one game short of a return to the state title game. CJ Howard (23), Chase Dupree (21) and Brandon Ashley (17) carried the load. Mike Polke scored 19 for the Bulldogs.
CLASS A D-II
Friday, February 28 at Georgia College
R3 #1 No. 1 Savannah 64, R8 #2 Warren County 55: Savannah (26-4) held off a furious comeback attempt from Warren County (21-10), closing on a 10-5 run to advance to the state title game after seeing a double digit lead trimmed to four points.
R3 #2 No. 3 McIntosh County Academy 49, R8 #1 No. 10 Greene County 41: The Buccaneers (26-5) took down Greene County (22-8) to set up a fourth meeting with Region 3 foe Savannah for the state title.
CLASS 3A-1A PRIVATE
Friday, February 28 at North Georgia
#1 No. 3 North Cobb Christian 57, #4 No. 2 Greenforest 51: North Cobb Christian (28-3) punched their ticket to the GHSA state championship for the first time in program history. Xavier Butler scored 20 points on five threes and Brock Bass-Bonner poured in 17 points. Grant Robich and Isaiah Chandler each scored 9 points. Orion Wilson led Greenforest (23-6) with a game-high 22 points. Kyree Taylor tossed in 12.
#3 No. 1 Holy Innocents’ 84, #7 No. 6 Mt. Paran 42: Holy Innocents’ (26-4) used an overpowering 27-3 second quarter to race away from Mt. Paran (20-14). North Carolina-signee Caleb Wilson poured in 19 points, 12 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 blocks. Devin Hutcherson posted 17 points and 4 rebounds. Jordan Mays pitched in 12 points and freshman Jaden McCullough had 10 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals.
