R5 #1 Sandy Creek (21-7) vs. R6 #2 Lithonia (24-5)

No. 4 Lithonia meets No. 10 Sandy Creek in what looks like an evenly matched game between two highly touted programs. Sandy Creek has had its ups and downs during Coach Anthony McKissic’s first season, but for the most part the year has been a success. Christian Turner runs the show up top. Like his choice of college, Gardner-Webb, he is a bulldog on the court harassing ball handlers and making plays while handling the point guard duties. He averages over 14 points per game while adding 6.1 rebounds, 6.7 assists and 3.4 steals. He’s at his best when he attacks the paint looking to either finish or kick out to an open shooter, most likely Elias Harden. The 6-foot-6 junior is a hot prospect that leads the Patriots in scoring at 21 points a night. A fatal flaw for Harden and Sandy Creek is that they love the three ball, but aren’t great at making them, hitting just 29% of their shots while Harden has taken a team-high 166 but has sank just 30%. Evan Jester and Keith Heard are rebounding and shot blocking aces that anchor the Patriot defense. AJ Freeman and Javon Jackson add spacing with their willingness to pull from deep. Sandy Creek will be tested defensively with Lithonia. The Bulldogs missed out on capturing the No. 1 seed out of Region 6, the state’s best region, after No. 3 Grady flung in a buzzer beating three from half court. UT-Chattanooga signee Rodney Chatman leads the offense with his decision making. Not usually asked to score, Chatman can still fill it up when needed. In a 56-48 win on Senior Night over No. 8 St. Pius to clinch the regular season title, Chatman poured in 24 points and added six rebounds. When Chatman’s not scoring, its running mate Tyheem Freeman making big plays. Inside, Coach Wallace Corker has 6-foot-7 Jacara Cross and Tyleen Patterson to work on the low block, making their offense extremely balanced.

R1 #3 Monroe (22-6) vs. R3 #1 Liberty County (25-1)

Haven’t seen No. 2 Liberty County play yet? Well here’s your chance. The Panthers are as legit of a title contender as they come and should even be viewed as a favorite if they can dispatch of a hot Monroe team. Liberty County has now ripped off 23-straight wins since falling to Statesboro 75-74 in 2OT in the third game of the year. The Panthers average over 79 points per game, large in part due to the fact that Auburn-commit Davion Mitchell and Richard LeCounte have the reigns of the offense. Mitchell is an electrifying 6-foot-2 guard widely known for his athleticism, a video on Twitter going viral of a fastbreak windmill dunk. He averages 24.1 points and 7.4 assists per game. Richard LeCounte is a five-star UGA football commit, but he’s pretty good at basketball too, posting 20.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game as the Robin to Mitchell’s Batman. A lack of elite size could be an issue, but first-year Head Coach Julian Stokes does have some 6-foot-5 players. Having an uber-athletic team makes up for their shortcomings. Martial Washington, a Georgia Southern football signee, is the team’s leading rebounder. The emergence of Will Richardson has given the Panthers a true third option. The sophomore averages 13.2 points and 5.5 rebounds. All the potentially intimidating weapons Liberty County has won’t scare Monroe. The Tornadoes have won 12 of their last 13 games, their only loss coming to buzzsaw Westover who has peaked at the right time. Monroe put together possibly its best game of the season in a 71-45 thrashing of No. 6 Walnut Grove in round one. It took them overtime in the Sweet 16, but they were able to escape Fayette County 72-67. Emeshaun Offord is an unheralded senior guard who is starting to earn the praise he deserves. He leads the team in scoring at 15.1 points per game and has been a lethal three-point shooter, knocking down 72 at a 43% rate. The supporting cast of Trentavious Jackson, K’Naurtica George and Napoleon Harris all must perform well if they went to hang in with the powerful Panthers.

R1 #1 Westover (19-11) vs. R6 #1 Grady (27-3)

Westover has hit their stride at exactly the right time, winning five-straight games including running through the deep Region 1 tournament, stunning Monroe and No. 9 Bainbridge along the way. Things didn’t get any easier in the state tournament, the Patriots surviving Eastside 70-68 in the first round and Woodward Academy 75-66 in the Sweet 16. Guard play will be paramount in deciding who will advance to the Final Four. Senior guard Allec Williams leads the Patriots in scoring at 16 points per game while handing out 6.2 assists. Jacobi Cratic, a 6-foot-7 senior, averages close to a double-double. Talented underclassmen round out a solid backcourt. Sophomore Kris Gardner and freshman Jordan “Snow” Brown have hit big shots early in their careers and will need to be ready defensively as they will likely help guard No. 3 Grady’s Avi Toomer, a guard heading to Bucknell. Toomer scored a state-high 52 points against lowly Cross Keys in a 125-31 victory. He averages 23.6 points and 9.5 rebounds. Christian Bryant and DJ Brittian are lightning quick guards that gobble up steals. As a team the Knights average 12.4 a night with Bryant leading the way with 3.7. Grady’s quickness has been a deciding factor in many games this year as they are able to overwhelm slower opponents. Coming out of Region 6, the Knights are more than ready for war. Out of their 27 wins, eight have come against teams that have held a top ten ranking at some point throughout the season.

R4 #1 Jonesboro (26-4) vs. R6 #4 St. Pius (24-6)

They meet again. One year after the Cardinals ended the Golden Lions’ season in the Sweet 16 67-57 en route to a second-straight state championship, No. 8 St. Pius looks to end No. 1 Jonesboro’s reign over AAAA. They might have contrasting styles, but at the end of the day, defense is what both Coach Daniel Maehlman and Coach Aaron Parr preach. Jonesboro lost two Division-1 players to graduation in Tracy Hector (Kennesaw State) and Austin Donaldson (Georgia State) but the Cardinals have not skipped a beat. The dynamic MJ Walker Jr. will undoubtedly be the focus for the Golden Lions. The junior is dropping in 22.5 points per game to go along with his 5.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists. Others have stepped up around him to fill the void left by Hector and Donaldson.  Eric Lovett (14.8 ppg) and Tariq Jenkins (10 ppg) have blossomed into key pieces while sophomore big man Jamari Smith continues his steady improvement. St. Pius will be ready for the task as they take on the state’s best. A four-seed coming out of Region 6 soured the Golden Lions’ road to Macon, but the team that has been ranked in the Top 10 all season long has proved that they are still worthy of their No. 8 billing even after faltering in the region tournament. St. Pius breezed by R7 #1 Cartersville in round one 63-46 before escaping Thomson with a 56-55 win thanks to freshman Matt Gonzalo’s free throw with six seconds left. In order to defeat the defending champs, Pius will need to control the tempo and grind out Jonesboro, beating them at their own defensive game. Kerney Lane will need to lift his team along with Christian Merrill as senior leaders. Lane averages 18 points and seven rebounds as a crafty 6-foot-6 southpaw. Merrill and Carson Seramur provide energy and shooting from the outside. Last year St. Pius held Walker to just 11 points on 3-of-8 shooting, proving Walker is human and can be slowed down. Lane on the other hand, torched the Cardinals for 26 points.