Category Archives: Girls Basketball

GHSA, GHSA Basketball, Girls Recaps, Recaps

Early season “upsets” challenge state rankings

Not even two weeks into the season and holiday tournaments and other non-region games across the state have put the Top 10 rankings to the test. With teams still trying to gain their footing on the young season some games are more of upsets than others. Accolades and preseason rankings have already proven to not matter much once the ball is tipped. Here are a few of the most interesting results from a full Monday of action.

BOYS

Lowndes 64, 2ANo. 2 Thomasville 51
Am I reading this score correctly? If so, Thomasville, who went 28-2 last year, is now 0-2 to start the year after opening as the state’s No. 1 team in Class AA. The Bulldogs were humbled by Class 7A Tift County 75-40 and now drop to Lowndes. Ever since the Bulldogs were smacked in the Elite Eight against Pace Academy 78-48, I just don’t know what to believe anymore, especially without Jordan Willis leading the charge at point. Reggie Perry has been described as a future “NBA Lottery Pick”, but if that’s the case, I don’t understand how the 6-foot-8 Arkansas-commit isn’t carrying this team on his back. Don’t forget 6-foot-9 Titus Wright is also receiving high major offers. No excuses for a 35-point loss and a 13-point loss to a team you should overwhelm with your D-I size. I’m hovering my hand over the panic button because I thought highly of this team last year and this season, only to be left searching for answers.

South Forsyth 70, 5ANo. 10 Riverwood 61
UNCW-signee Evan Cole carried the War Eagles with 39 points while Isaiah Magee added eight. Embry-Riddle signee did the best he could to lift the Raiders, pouring in 26 points. Charnchai Chantha added six points and 10 assists but the 6-foot-8 Cole was too much to handle.

Dorman, SC 86, 2ANo. 4 Monticello 57
This one wasn’t too much of an upset as the South Carolina power rolled over a smaller scrappy Monticello team. Ashton Bonner finished with 20 points, six rebounds and four assists. CJ Adams collected 13 points, four assists and six steals. This was a classic learning experience as Monticello entered as a heavy underdog with their enrollment of 700 playing against South Carolina’s largest school, Dorman, who boasts 3,400 students.

7ANo. 10 Collins Hill 54, 5ANo. 1 Columbia 51
A front-end miss of a 1-and-1 helped Collins Hill hold off Columbia in a great game. Top 10 matchups can’t really be considered too much of an upset especially with a higher classification beating a lower one, but still, when a No. 1 team gets beaten, it’s big news.

GIRLS

Hillgrove 66, 7ANo. 8 Brookwood 53
Hillgrove always has talent. They might not be what they once were, but they are still a tough team and let Brookwood know firsthand. Hillgrove’s only losses so far have come to Class 7A No. 1 Norcross and Class A-Private No. 2 Wesleyan. They have already beaten Class 3A No. 5 GAC and now Brookwood. They held Texas A&M-signee N’Dea Jones to 11 points and eight rebounds (she did have six blocks however). With a couple more strong performances, Hillgrove should crack the Top 10 and this one probably won’t end up being a bad loss for Brookwood.

5ANo. 2 Flowery Branch 55, 6ANo. 1 Winder-Barrow 46
This was a great game between evenly matched opponents. Flowery Branch got 12 points and four rebounds from North Georgia-signee Julianne Sutton as she battled the No. 1 ranked post player in the nation, Olivia Nelson-Ododa, who finished with a game-high 18 points. Versatile X-factor Taniyah Worth had 11 points, 10 rebounds and three assists while Lexie Sengkhammee scored 10 points and Caroline Wysocki pitched in eight points and six rebounds to take down the Bulldoggs. The two schools will meet twice more, on Nov. 29 at Flowery Branch and Jan. 3 at Winder-Barrow.

Rome 74, 3ANo. 4 Calhoun 65
Rome won 18 games last year but lost by 43 in the first round of state to eventual champion Southwest DeKalb. The battle tested 5A school rode post player Taya Gibson’s 31 points to edge past Calhoun using a 12-0 run in the fourth quarter to put it out of reach. Re’tavia Floyd netted 16 to flank Gibson. Calhoun received 25 from Ashlyn Barnes and 23 from Jana Johns in the loss. This one will sting right now, but Rome is a larger school with a good group coming back.

North Forsyth 45, 6ANo. 6 Northview 30
The Titans rose four spots in this week’s poll but quickly saw their Forsyth County nightmares reappear. North Forsyth has now won eight straight against Northview and managed to control the game and play the style they wanted as the Raiders negated the Titans’ size advantage. North Forsyth is 5-0 to begin the year and is on the verge of busting down the door to crack the Class 7A rankings.

 

GHSA, Girls Basketball, Girls Rankings

Week 1 Girls Rankings

Class AAAAAAA

  1. Norcross (3-0)
  2. Archer (4-0)
  3. McEachern (0-1)
  4. Collins Hill (0-0)
  5. Newton (2-0)
  6. Westlake (0-1)
  7. Cherokee (1-0)
  8. Brookwood (1-0)
  9. Mill Creek (2-0)
  10. Colquitt County (1-0)

Class AAAAAA

  1. Winder-Barrow (1-0)
  2. Douglas County (2-1)
  3. Mays (0-0)
  4. Grovetown (3-0)
  5. Harrison (1-1)
  6. Northview (2-0)
  7. Jonesboro (2-1)
  8. Sequoyah (2-0)
  9. Brunswick (0-0)
  10. Tucker (2-0)

 Class AAAAA

  1. Buford (0-0)
  2. Flowery Branch (1-0)
  3. Southwest DeKalb (1-1)
  4. Griffin (3-0)
  5. Bainbridge (0-0)
  6. Warner Robins (1-0)
  7. Villa Rica (0-0)
  8. Carrollton (0-0)
  9. Loganville (1-2)
  10. Harris County (1-0)

Class AAAA

  1. Columbus (1-0)
  2. Cross Creek (0-0)
  3. North Oconee (3-0)
  4. Henry County (1-1)
  5. West Hall (0-2)
  6. Carver-Columbus (2-0)
  7. Americus-Sumter (1-1)
  8. Northwest Whitfield (0-0)
  9. Jefferson (2-0)
  10. Sandy Creek (2-0)

Class AAA

  1. Johnson-Savannah (2-0)
  2. Morgan County (0-1)
  3. Beach (0-0)
  4. Calhoun (0-0)
  5. Greater Atlanta Christian (1-2)
  6. Ringgold (0-0)
  7. Kendrick (1-0)
  8. Redan (3-0)
  9. Haralson County (1-0)
  10. Hart County (1-0)

Class AA

  1. Model (0-1)
  2. Putnam County (0-0)
  3. Rabun County (1-0)
  4. Vidalia (0-0)
  5. Laney (0-0)
  6. Dodge County (0-0)
  7. Banks County (2-0)
  8. Swainsboro (0-1)
  9. Armuchee (1-1)
  10. Heard County (2-1)

Class A-Private

  1. St. Francis (2-0)
  2. Wesleyan (3-0)
  3. Holy Innocents’ (2-0)
  4. Greenforest (0-0)
  5. Our Lady of Mercy (2-0)
  6. Calvary Day (0-0)
  7. Southwest Atlanta Christian (0-1)
  8. Tattnall Square (0-0)
  9. Lakeview Academy (1-0)
  10. Savannah Country Day (1-0)

Class A-Public

  1. Pelham (0-0)
  2. Terrell County (0-0)
  3. Taylor County (0-0)
  4. Greenville (1-0)
  5. Telfair County (2-0)
  6. Treutlen (0-0)
  7. Wheeler County (1-1)
  8. Hancock Central (0-0)
  9. Wilcox County (1-0)
  10. Mitchell County (0-0)

 

In search of a four-peat in the state’s highest classification, No. 3 McEachern was stopped by No. 1 Norcross in a star-studded early season matchup, 57-53. No. 2 Archer moves up a spot after a 4-0 start with wins over Class AAAAA No. 9 Loganville (38-29), Class AAAAAA No. 7 Jonesboro (48-36) and Class AAA No. 2 Morgan County (64-49). Woodstock and Duluth both drop out of the Top 10. The Wolverines were beat by Class AAAAAA’s No. 6 Northview 57-44 and No. 10  Tucker 48-41 while sandwiching a nice victory over Class AAA No. 5 Greater Atlanta Christian, 61-56, in between. Duluth picked up two blow out wins but fell to South Gwinnett 54-46. Into the rankings are No. 9 Mill Creek and No. 10 Colquitt County. Mill Creek drilled Fayette County and then beat Class AAAA No. 5 West Hall 43-35. Colquitt will be a tough out in South Georgia. They beat Crisp County 73-41 behind Za’Nautica Downs’ 29 points, eight rebounds and five steals.

Class AAAAAA’s No. 1 Winder-Barrow demolished Berkmar 89-14. No. 2 Douglas County holds onto their spot after an overtime loss to Greater Atlanta Christian 78-75. The Tigers beat Class AAAAAAA No. 6 Westlake 60-57 and slipped by Stephenson 63-57. No. 5 Harrison moves up a spot after a 74-64 loss to Norcross and a 56-50 win over Class AAAAA No. 3 Southwest DeKalb. No. 10 Tucker debuts following wins over Parkview (45-39) and Woodstock (48-41). The biggest mover so far? No. 6 Northview. The Titans pounded away at Woodstock and held a 20-point lead for the majority of the game and then took down previously ranked St. Pius, 48-28. Not many teams can match Northview’s quality size inside, making them a dangerous team come tournament time if they can keep it all together.

It was pretty much status quo in Class AAAAA outside of No. 3 Southwest DeKalb dropping to Harrison by six. The Panthers did however, earn a 59-48 win over Stephenson beforehand. Loganville drops a spot to No. 9 after tough losses to ranked opponents Archer (38-29) and North Oconee (49-42).

Preseason Class AAAA No. 3 West Hall falls to No. 5 after losing to Mill Creek 43-35 and P.K. Yonge, FL 60-47. A tough early season schedule should pay dividends later in the season. North Oconee takes over at No. 3 with wins over Loganville, Central Gwinnett (58-39) and Cedar Shoals (50-32). St. Pius drops out but also does Marist, who opened the year ranked No. 5. The War Eagles lost to Centennial 36-32 and will need to regroup. No. 9 Jefferson and No. 10 Sandy Creek will try to cement themselves as Top 10 teams.

With No. 2 Morgan County’s loss to Archer, Johnson-Savannah takes the reigns as top dog in Class AAA. Greater Atlanta Christian slips two spots after seeing mixed results against a tough schedule, losing to Woodstock and Hillgrove but beating Douglas County in overtime. Preseason No. 8 Lovett, No. 9 East Hall and No. 10 Franklin County all exit the poll. In is No. 8 Redan, No. 9 Haralson County and No. 10 Hart County. Haralson County won a defensive battle with Class AA No. 10 Heard County, 34-16.

Class AA No. 1 Model lost to Class A-Private No. 3 Holy Innocents’ (68-61), but their strong showing is enough for the Blue Devils to retain their No. 1 ranking. No. 3 Rabun County rises a spot after drilling Dawson County 76-51. Swainsboro plummets three spots to No. 8 after a 46-41 loss to Coffee. Armuchee moves up to No. 9. Their win over Class A-Private Preseason No. 10 Darlington 43-32 outweighs their 43-38 loss to Cass just enough to stay ranked. No. 7 Banks County is new to the poll after Jeff Davis exits following a 49-37 loss to Class A-Public No. 5 Telfair County. Banks County picked up wins in Hall County beating North Hall 56-43 and Class AAA Preseason No. 9 East Hall, 60-48.

It was ho-hum for Class A-Private’s top three teams, each of them picking up wildly impressive victories. No. 1 St. Francis crushed Class AAAA No. 7 Americus-Sumer 63-26. No. 2 Wesleyan beat Hillgrove 66-53 and blew out Effingham County (93-28) and Tattnall County (90-38). No. 3 Holy Innocents’ beat Model and thumped rival Riverwood 77-15. No. 10 Savannah Country Day replaces Darlington.

Not much happened in Class A-Public but No. 5 Telfair County has already moved up two spots, beating Jeff Davis 49-37 and No. 7 Wheeler County 66-59. No. 4 Greenville looked good in their 68-35 rout of Calhoun County.

GHSA, GHSA Basketball, Girls Recaps, Recaps

GHSA Statewide Recap 11-18

BOYS

 

Class AAAAAAA

No. 2 Pebblebrook 49, Dillard, FL 40: Xavier signee Elias Harden scored a game-high 16 points and Alabama signee Collin Sexton tossed in 11 to hold off Dillard and Florida State signee RaiQuan Gray’s 15 points.

No. 5 Newton 83, 4ANo. 1 Henry County 67: Jacksonville signee JD Notae scored 17 points and Isaiah Miller and Darvin Jones both had 15 as the Rams overpowered Class AAAA No. 1 Henry County after leading 30-8 after the first quarter and 46-29 at the half. Damion Rosser (New Orleans) led Henry County with 16 points before rolling his ankle. George Mason signee Javon Greene had 13.

Mountain View 76, Evans 43: Mountain View steamrolled Evans at the Evans Tip-off Tournament. Spencer Rodgers scored a team-high 15 points and added 3 steals. Miles Long chipped in 13 points and 4 assists. Uchenna Nwagbara flirted with a double-double, posting 12 points and 9 rebounds. The Bears meet Class AA No. 7 Butler tomorrow morning.

Forsyth Central 57, Lassiter 36: Ethan Hester went for 19 points and 8 rebounds while CJ Smith netted 13 points.

Class AAAAAA

No. 9 Alpharetta 67, North Forsyth 47: Head Coach Jason Dasigner got his first win on the sidelines at Alpharetta. The Raiders led 41-19 at the half behind Brandon Barron’s 20 points. The sophomore finished with 23 on the night. David Swillum chipped in 8 points and 10 rebounds. Carlos Carriere, fresh off the football field, had 10 points and 5 rebounds.

Creekview 74, Brewbaker Tech, AL 69: Creekview’s backcourt powered the Grizzlies. KJ Jenkins scored 18 and Weber Sandlin added 17. Cole Mikes chipped in 16 points and drew two charges. Desmond Williams led Brewbaker Tech with 28 points.

Osborne 64, North Atlanta 53: Latrell Tate went for 18 points and Kaylin Davis poured in a team-high 20 to lift the Cardinals. Jermaine Thompson added 9 points.

Cambridge 50, Walton 45:  Caleb Snyder and Noah Lucas netted 11 points apiece while Ryan Kulaga chipped in 9 points in a Bears win.

River Ridge 70, Pickens 54:  Chris Simmons and Noah Fitzgerald scored 13 apiece while Destin Exinor added 10 to defeat Pickens. The Knights held Pickens scoreless in the third quarter, ballooning a 34-29 halftime lead to a 50-29 advantage. Pickens was led by Joseph Gossett (12) and Zach Goss (10). Blake Gorth had 8 points and 8 rebounds.

Class AAAAA

No. 10 Riverwood 71, Mt. Vernon Presbyterian 36: Senior guard Charnchai Chantha powered the Raiders from his guard position, totaling 16 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists and 5 steals. Josh Brown added 14 points, 9 rebounds and 3 blocks. Rudy Fitzgibbons had 10 points and 7 steals.

Flowery Branch 59, Chattahoochee 38: The Falcons caught fire from deep, sinking 12 total threes on the night and added 15 steals defensively all without Brannon Clark and Dalton Gerdts. Patsheko Lutumba nailed four threes and finished with a team-high 14 points. Both Justin Quick and Caleb Murphy scored 12 points. Blake Coxworth chipped in 5 points and 7 assists.

Walnut Grove 63, Social Circle 25: Jailen Robinson scored 13 points, Dashun Smith scored 12 and RJ Selman chipped in 10 for the Warriors in a season opening win.

South Effingham 83, Groves 61: Derrick Newberry poured in 23 points to lead the Mustangs while Ryan McGee (14) and Makenly Newbill (12) also had strong games.

Class AAAA

Richmond Academy 63, Woodward Academy 38: Vontrez Roberts led 10 Musketeers that scored with 11 points. Moses Williams scored 10, DT Stephens added 8 and Isaiah Williams and Jason Weaver both pitched in 7 points apiece. Junior Malik Poindexter led Woodward with 10 points while Brennan McDaniel added 8 points and 8 rebounds. The War Eagles shot just 24%  and had 16 turnovers.

Class AAA

Redan 62, Monroe Area 54: Tyonn Stuckey went for 21 points, 8 assists and 4 steals in an impressive road win. Tremayne Anderson had 15 points and 8 rebounds. William Littles contributed 11 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists.

Class A-Private

No. 5 St. Francis 71, Roswell 53: St. Francis’ youth overwhelmed Roswell. Freshmen Dwon Odom and Chase Ellis had big games. Odom finished with 19 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists while Ellis went for 16 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Sophomores CJ Riley and Sean Paradise poured in 15 and 13 points respectively. Sophomore guard Miles Herron led all scorers with 24 for Roswell.

Hebron Christian 67, Mt. de Sales 62: John Stewart scored 18 and Connor Almon scored 17 to power the Lions attack. Troy Allen chipped in 11 in the win.

Galloway 82, Providence Christian 59:  A young Providence Christian team received 15 points from Al Dorsey and 13 from Parker Trump in a loss.

GICAAMt. Bethel Christian 71, Paideia 50: Jordan Meka, a 6-foot-7 freshman, collected 16 points and 10 blocks in a GICAA-GHSA early season showdown. Sophomore Coleman Boyd had 19 points and junior Jaquez Gilbert had 17 in the Hoops for the Cure Classic victory.

Class A-Public

(Scrimmage) No. 1 Wilkinson County 107, Central-Macon 105 2OT: In a scrimmage for the ages, No. 1 Wilkinson County held off a game Chargers group. Clarence Jackson went off for 37 points, 16 rebounds and 7 assists. Antarius McCoy carried Central-Macon with 38 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals. Tyrice Paul added 24 in the loss.

                                                                                

GIRLS

Class AAAAAAA

Dacula 52, North Gwinnett 47: Kandy Brown posted an 11-point, 12-rebound, 11-block triple-double to carry the Falcons past the Lady Bulldogs. Kendall Bollmer netted 20 points and Helena Lee had 13 in the win. Jessica Belcher led North Gwinnett with 12 points while Alanni Brown chipped in 10 points.

Mountain View 52, Greenbrier 32: Kamryn Collins scored 16 points and Alea Spears had 12 in the Bears’ victory in the Wolfpack Tip-off Classic.

Class AAAAAA

No. 8 Sequoyah 58, Woodward Academy 35: Alyssa Cagle scored 11 points, dished out 7 assists and grabbed 6 rebounds. Peyton Satterfield netted 15 points. Gabi Latimer had 6 points and 10 rebounds while Lauren Schletty had 6 points 9 rebounds. Colby Carden chipped in 7 points and 4 assists.

Lovejoy 54, Hampton 10: Taylor Borum outscored the Lady Hornets by herself, tallying 11 points and 6 rebounds.

River Ridge 57, Pickens 43: Pickens dropped their first game of the young year to the Knights. In the loss Shelby Cook had 11 points and 6 rebounds. Mykenzie Weaver had 9 points and 3 steals.

Lanier 60, Landmark Christian 25: Bailey Bassett paced the Longhorns with 14 points and 4 steals. Kalen Surles had 14 points and 6 rebounds.

Class AAAAA

Cass 43, 2ANo. 10 Armuchee 38: The Lady Colonels knocked off Armuchee behind Jana Morning’s 15 points and Payton Stoddard’s 9.

McIntosh 63, New Manchester 50: DeLayne Rotolo dropped 18, Kennedi Miller scored 16 and Samantha Coffey added 12 to lead the Lady Chiefs to a non-region victory.

Class AAAA

No. 4 North Oconee 58, Central Gwinnett 39: Emma Weynand posted 15 points in the Lady Titans victory.

Class AAA

No. 2 Johnson-Savannah 58, Richmond Hill 38: The Atomsmashers rolled behind Jacksonville signee Alexis Pierce who scored 30 points and collected 9 steals and 9 assists.

Class A-Private

No. 1 St. Francis 63, 4ANo. 8 Americus-Sumter 26: The defending Class AAAA champs had no shot against the Class A-Private title holders. Kasi Kushkituah (Tennessee) had 16 points, 5 rebounds and 4 blocks. Olivia Swanston had 13 points and 3 steals. Maya Dodson (Stanford) went for 10 points, 12 rebounds, 3 steals and 3 blocks. Western Kentucky signee Nichel Tampa pitched in 10 points, 4 assists and 6 steals.

No. 2 Wesleyan 93, Effingham County 38: Mikayla Coombs finished with 11 points and 9 rebounds as Wesleyan used a balanced onslaught to rip Effingham County. Sutton West had 12 points and 9 rebounds. AC Carter went for 8 points and 12 rebounds and Natalie Armstrong tallied 8 boards.

GHSA, GHSA Basketball, Girls Recaps, Recaps

GHSA Statewide Recap 11-15

Boys

 

Class AAAAAAA

No. 9 Collins Hill 75, Osborne 66: In a loss, the Osborne Cardinals were led by Latrell Tate’s 20 points. Jermaine Thompson scored 14 and Kaylan Davis added 11. JD Ozoh powered the Eagles with 18 points. Chris Parks recorded 16 points while Max Clark finished with 14 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Kenny Stanciel produced 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Woodstock 66, Northview 61: The Wolverines rallied from a 28-17 halftime deficit to storm past Northview. Woodstock took its first lead of the second half with 1:32 remaining on a Tyreke Johnson free throw. Johnson, playing with a strained groin, poured in 33 points (16-of-20 FT), 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 7 steals. Running mate Dylin Hardeman scored all 11 points in the second half. Brant Hurter added 8 points, 6 rebounds and 1 block while Cameron Crowe tallied 7 points, 7 rebounds and 2 steals. Northview received 28 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal from junior point guard Justin Brown. Joe Jones added 10 points and 5 rebounds. Zane Patel notched 5 points, 13 rebounds and 3 blocks in the loss.

Parkview 72, Creekside 55: Parkview earned an impressive road win, defeating the Seminoles by 17. Freshman Toneari Lane dropped a team-high 16 points. Justin Spencer scored 15 while Cam Chavers (12) and Ahmir Langlais (8) also did damage. Creekside was led by 6-foot-8 big man Tyson Jackson, the junior scoring 19.

Discovery 72, Jefferson 31: The Titans rolled behind a balanced attack. Jaylen Bussey canned six threes en route to a team-high 18 points. Junior 6-foot-7 post Kalu Ezikpe totaled 13 points and 11 rebounds. Air Force signee Jaden Stanley went for 11 points and 7 rebounds. DJ Young dished out 6 assists.

Central Gwinnett 93, West Forsyth 55: The Black Knights’ potent backcourt overwhelmed the West Forsyth Wolverines. Jalen Hillery pumped in 30 points while Jalen Morgan added 23 and Spencer Turner managed to score 12 points.

Duluth 90, Drew 71: Adam Flagler paced the Wildcat backcourt with 20 points and 6 rebounds. Jalen Hodges collected 17 points and 5 rebounds. Will Huzzie posted 11 points and 8 rebounds. Christian Kelly netted 11 points and Lamont Smith finished with 6 points and 9 assists.

Forsyth Central 60, Pickens 32: Hunter McDonald scored 14 points and picked up 9 rebounds and 6 assists to lead the Bulldogs over the Dragons. CJ Smith netted 15 points and dished out 6 assists. Ethan Hester added 11 points. Seth Bishop scored 13 points in the loss for Pickens.

Mountain View 55, Archer 37: The Bears raced past the Tigers behind Spencer Rodgers’ 17 points and 5 assists. Miles Long added 11 points and 3 steals while Jalen Hayes notched 9 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists.

Pope 83, Kennesaw Mountain 75: Kennesaw Mountain struggled to contain AJ Watson who poured in 31 points and 6 assists to power the Greyhounds.

Roswell 55, South Forsyth 54: Senior RJ Frierson sank a game-winning free throw with :01 second left to propel the Hornets over the War Eagles on the road. Senior James Anderson scored nine of his 21 points in the fourth quarter. Sophomore Miles Herron netted 21 in the win as Roswell advances to 2-0.

Class AAAAAA

(Scrimmage) No. 5 Allatoona 69, Milton 43: Trey Doomes poured in 16 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists in a high profile preseason scrimmage.

No. 6 Heritage-Conyers 70, Lithonia 66: Jordan Thomas scored 17 points in addition to his 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals. Isaiah Banks finished with 12 points, 6 rebounds and 5 steals. Florida Atlantic signee Byron Abrams went for 16 points, 7 assists and 3 steals. JaQuez Hicks controlled the paint, tallying 8 points, 14 rebounds, 3 steals and 5 blocks.

Apalachee 83, Monroe Area 77 OT: Omer Ahmed scored 23 points to lead the Wildcats. Deron Collier and Brandon Bannis both pitched in 9 points apiece. Jamonte Wallace added 8 points and Derek Miller finished with 8 points and 10 rebounds.

Creekview 59, North Cobb 41: Weber Sandlin scored 15 points to help the Grizzlies to an out-of-region win. Chandler Wright grabbed 13 rebounds.

Northgate 87, Ola 68: The Vikings received a game-high 34 points from Treveon Cook.

Class AAAAA

No. 8 Southwest DeKalb 43, Stephenson 41: Josh Archer hit a shot with four seconds left to lift Southwest DeKalb over a scrappy Stephenson bunch. Eugene Brown III led the Panthers with 10 points while Quincy Carter added 9 and Archer produced 8 points and 7 rebounds. Khalil Foster-Scott scored a game-high 14 for Stephenson. Trevon Daniel went for 10 points and 13 rebounds in the loss.

No. 9 Fayette County 75, 4ANo. 2 Sandy Creek 69: Phillip Young finished with 19 points, 6 rebounds and 5 steals to help the Tigers to a statement victory early in the year. Austin Nesmith scored 16 points. Jaylen Holloway totaled 13 points, 7 assists, 2 steals and 3 blocks. Joshua Dupree chipped in 8 points, 3 steals and 3 blocks while Furman signee Noah Gurley tossed in 12 points, 6 rebounds and 4 blocks. Three players fouled out for Sandy Creek as the Patriots were hit with 34 team fouls. Evan Jester went for 26 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks in the loss. KJ Wilkins added 12 points and 4 steals, Xavier Brewer netted 11 points and TJ Bickerstaff finished with 10 points and 5 rebounds.

No. 10 Riverwood 63, 1ANo. 4 Holy Innocents’ 62: Embry-Riddle signee Elijah Jenkins netted 13 points to go with his 9 rebounds and 6 assists in another tight victory over rival Holy Innocents’. Rudy Fitzgibbons went for 15 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. Charnchai Chantha collected 6 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists. Senior 6-foot-7 post Josh Brown finished with 8 points, 9 rebounds and 3 steals. In the loss, Cole Smith scored a game-high 23 points. Richard Surdykowski added 17 points and Jules Erving followed with 14.

Kell 68, Sprayberry 60: Florida Gulf Cost big man Brian Thomas pulled down a 13-point 11-rebound double-double to help the Longhorns to an in county victory. Sayvon Delgado scored a game-high 18 and Jahwan Smith chipped in 10 points and 5 assists. Sprayberry received 15 points from Rodney Pearson and 16 points from Eddie Figueroa.

Flowery Branch 66, East Jackson 33: Caleb Murphy did damage for the Falcons, tossing in a team-high 18 points to go with his 3 steals and 2 blocks. Brannon Clark scored 13 points and collected 4 steals while Blake Coxworth netted 12 points.

Johnson-Gainesville 61, Habersham Central 34: Will Richter got the Johnson Knights off to a good start this year scoring a team-high 16 points. Alex Sims did the dirty work and collected six points in the process.

Class AAAA

No. 3 Upson-Lee 58, Heard County 44: Upson-Lee dominated, opening up a 28-2 first quarter lead before playing the bench for the majority of the game. Tye Fagan dropped in 19 points, 7 rebounds, 5 steals and 2 blocks in limited action.

Blessed Trinity 62, Fellowship Christian 32: Ben Shappard and Andy Swade scored 10 points apiece for Blessed Trinity. Russell Dorvee netted a game-high 12. Sophomore CJ Abrams chipped in 9 points as 10 Titans cracked the scoring column. Fellowship was led by Cody Frazer’s 11 points.

Shaw 92, Harris County 68: Jalen Ken poured in 22 points and grabbed three rebounds while Chris Hicks netted 21 points and handed out 3 assists.

Class AAA

(Scrimmage) No. 2 Westside-Macon 88, Locust Grove 36: New look Westside-Macon romped Locust Grove. Xavier signee Kentrevious Jones went for 25 points and 5 rebounds. Greg Holloway, a sleeper that will be highlighted on hypesouth.com, finished with 18 points and 7 rebounds. Trey Foster had 9 points and 4 assists. Khavon Moore played sparingly in the blow out.

No. 8 Lovett 51, North Atlanta 46 2OT: With eight players missing from the active roster due to the football state playoffs, the Lovett Lions still found a way to win and proved that free throw shooting wins games. Ryan Greer poured in 32 points and went 16-of-24 from the line while as a team the Lions shot 19-of-28. North Atlanta shot just 10-of-27 and had a chance to win in regulation, but sophomore Robert Ghirardini of Lovett buried a three at the buzzer to send it to an extra period. Ghirardini finished with 6 points while Ryan Pate scored 9. North Atlanta was led by Jadin Knight’s 13 points and Emmanuel Roberts’ 10.

Long County 79, Bacon County 70: Terry Smith and Henry Blair powered the Long County Blue Tide. Smith dropped 24 while Blair pumped in 21 points.

Redan 67, Morrow 64: Electric guard play from Tyonn Stuckey and Jibril Wykcoff tenacity helped the Raiders to a nice out of region victory. Stuckey finished with 18 points, 9 assists and 5 steals. Wykcoff went off for 28 points, 9 rebounds and 3 steals.

Class AA

No. 4 Monticello 69, Jones County 65: CJ Adams erupted for 29 points and 6 rebounds. Ashton Bonner went for 20 points and 5 rebounds as the Hurricane guards propelled Monticello to a win.

No. 8 Banks County 51, North Hall 45: Gabe Martin scored 18 points and Kahmal Wiley tossed in 12 points to withstand the visiting Trojans. North Hall received 13 points from Taylor Hanson and 12 from Justin Rabb.

Class A-Private

Hebron Christian 74, Social Circle 50:  The Derrick Heberling era got off to a good start, defeating Social Circle by 24. John Stewart and Alex Calvert both netted 13 points. Tanner Welch and Wesley Warbington added 10 points apiece.

Prince Avenue 62, Oglethorpe County 60: Sophomore Mack Simmons sank two big free throws late to seal a victory for the Wolverines. Simmons finished with 18 points. Senior Sam Todd netted a team-high 22.

 

Girls

Class AAAAAAA

Mill Creek 43, 4ANo. 3 West Hall 35: Coming off of a disappointing 13-15 season, Mill Creek picked up its second big win of the season. In the loss Anna McKendree was held to 15 points and 5 rebounds. Macy Passmore pitched in 10 points and 4 rebounds.

Class AAAAAA

No. 10 Northview 57, 7ANo. 9 Woodstock 44: Northview’s size overwhelmed Woodstock. Sophomore Ashlee Austin pitched in 14 points, 15 rebounds, 3 steals and 1 block. Maya Richards, also a sophomore, produced 13 points, 8 rebounds and 6 blocks. Senior Shannon Titus finished with 11 points, 8 rebounds, 2 steals and 7 blocks. Woodstock was led by South Alabama signee Devyn Lowe, who scored a game-high 23.

Class AAAAA

McIntosh 51, Newnan 31: DeLayne Rotolo led the Lady Chiefs with a game-high 18 points.

Class AAAA

No. 4 North Oconee 49, 5ANo. 8 Loganville 42: The Lady Titans held off Loganville in a great cross classification Top 10 matchup. Emma Weynand netted 15 points while Camryn Williams chipped in 14 to lead North Oconee.

Pickens 61, Forsyth Central 54: Mykenzie Weaver got the Dragonettes off to a season opening win, scoring 20 points.

 

GHSA, Girls Basketball

Fulton County Media Day (Girls)

Complete Video: http://www.nfhsnetwork.com/events/northview-high-school-johns-creek-ga/26883f8408

Cambridge
Head Coach: Lesley Broadwell
2015-16: 10-17 

Does winning a state championship in softball carry momentum over into basketball season: “Absolutely winning breeds winning. Audrey [Smith] was part of that softball team. We are cheering for all the teams at Cambridge and there has been some success in the Fall and are looking to keep moving forward in that direction.”

 

Creekside
Head Coach: Rontashala Williams
2015-16: 5-18

On playing in a difficult region: “I told them someone told me that we were picked to win the region this year so they are so psyched and hyped up, they really don’t know who’s on the other teams. They are just so excited.”

On freshman Sitra Newton: “I’m expecting great things out of her. She still has a lot of things she needs to build on, grown on, but she’s a leader already as a freshman and I’m excited to see her on the court and get in and help lead this team.”

 

Westlake
Head Coach: Hilda Hankerson
2015-16: 25-6 

Is a young Westlake team ready to live up to expectations as Preseason No. 5: “I really think they are especially in their heart. In their heart they are ready. Sometimes that doesn’t always manifest on the floor but sometimes it does. Since they are so young, I will find out real soon. I do believe that they are. We had a real good summer.”


Centennial
Head Coach: John Domville
2015-16: 12-17

What did your team learn from last year’s state playoff berth: “I think the biggest thing was getting those extra practices. I don’t think a lot of people expected us to go to state, we ended that game on a 17-0 run. That was a North Forsyth team that was kind of a skeleton in our closet so to speak. To tell you, those Forsyth schools were always tough for Centennial to beat. And playing a team like Norcross at Norcross, for them to see that environment and again to set the expectations that this is where we are supposed to be.”

 

Chattahoochee
Head Coach: Haaris Quraishy
2015-16: 12-17

On Alayna Ford, Sienna Gore and Marissa Gore: “Alayna has really worked on her game over the offseason. She had a good summer on the AAU circuit and really expanded her game to be able to go inside and outside. Sienna is a little bit of a throwback in the sense that she doesn’t play AAU, she’s in the gym all of the time. Her and her sister are together literally all of the time. They are great kids, they work hard and they are fun to coach.”

 

Johns Creek
Head Coach: Kirk Call
2015-16: 6-19

How to recreate the success he had at Parkview: “It’s very challenging. I’ll be the first to tell you we had a lot of great players at Parkview. The best thing about that group is they bought in. They played for each other. I’m a big proponent of that if you care more about the person next to you than yourself you’re going to be successful. Step 1 to getting that process done is understanding the fact that I’m not out here for myself, I’m out here for my teammates and as long as I’m focused on doing something for my teammate and making everyone else better, that comes back around and works for me when they are creating a play for me.”

 

Alpharetta
Head Coach: David Walden
2015-16: 7-18

What to expect from sophomore Croix Bethune: “I’m looking at her and [Gogo and Juju Maduka] as leaders for our younger kids and for the kids who had little experience last year. I’m hoping with some of the players we got coming up that we can take some of the pressure off her as well from last year, scoring-wise and sometimes ball handling-wise as well. Really for her, the plan is for her to lead by example.”

Croix Bethune

What did you learn your freshman year that you can use going forward: “Really working hard, but not going overboard and to save some of my energy. The seniors that just graduated, having them to help me last season and having these players to help me.”

 

North Springs
Head Coach: Tonique Frasier
2015-16: 11-10 

On this year’s game plan: “Our game plan is to go out and play their basketball that I teach the girls every night from fundamental basics to executing. That’s basically our game plan.”

 

Northview
Head Coach: Chris Yarbrough
2015-16: 16-13 

Is the team ready to handle the pressure of being ranked No. 10 in the state: “One of the things I stress to them with all the accolades; it’s still just on paper. We haven’t played a game yet. Preseason rankings don’t count, they don’t get us anywhere so we need to make sure that we can rise to expectations that people are setting for us. I think we snuck up on people the last couple of years with the way we played but now we have to embrace the target. People are going to be coming after us night in and night out and we have to rise to that level each night.”

Ashlee Austin: “There’s a lot of new stuff: new region, new players but we are going to just keep playing our game and do what we can do.”

Shannon Titus: “We need to just have fun. I think when we are too hard on ourselves we make more mistakes and when we have fun we share the ball; we will be just fine and play our game.”

Maya Richards: “I think a lot of pressure, you can get wrapped up in the pressure so easily that when you’re actually playing, you just have to play basketball and not worry about your parents or school, you got to worry about playing the game and enjoy it.”

What changes in Year 2 after a successful freshman season:

Austin: “A lot more is expected of us this year now that we are older, we’ve had a season playing with them. A lot more is expected of us to contribute to the team and become those kinds of leaders that can lead everybody and create stuff for each other.”

Richards: “I think we’ve both improved from last year and we played AAU together so I think AAU has really helped us. AAU plus summer basketball, we’ve grown as people and players.”

On Shannon Titus’ role one the team and goal for her senior season:

Titus: “I think I just need to give it everything I have both offensively and defensively. I set a record [steals] but I can keep setting records and beat my own record. I guess I’m pretty hard on the younger players just to get them in track because they can goof off a little bit, just to help them and guide them on the right path.”