Week 3 GHSA Boys Basketball State Rankings

Week 3 GHSA Boys Basketball State Rankings


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Class AAAAAAA

1. Wheeler (3-0)
2. McEachern (5-1)
3. Norcross (4-0)
4. Grayson (4-1)
5. Newton (2-1)
6. Pebblebrook (2-2)
7. Carrollton (2-0)
8. Parkview (4-2)
9. Archer (5-1)
10. Osborne (6-2)

Class AAAAAA

1. Alexander (3-0)
2. Grovetown (2-4)
3. Jonesboro (1-0)
4. Lanier (2-3)
5. Langston Hughes (1-2)
6. Etowah (0-4)
7. St. Pius X (1-2)
8. Marist (1-3)
9. North Forsyth (3-1)
10. Paulding County (1-1)

Class AAAAA

1. Kell (3-0)
2. Eagle’s Landing (3-0)
3. Hiram (4-1)
4. Tri-Cities (2-2)
5. Mays (2-2)
6. Jones County (4-0)
7. Heritage-Conyers (3-1)
8. Dutchtown (4-2)
9. Tucker (3-2)
10. Lithonia (5-0)

Class AAAA

1. McDonough (2-0)
2. Pace Academy (2-0)
3. Lovett (3-0)
4. Fayette County (4-1)
5. Miller Grove (4-1)
6. Madison County (3-0)
7. Westover (2-2)
8. Baldwin (0-1)
9. Westside-Macon (2-1)
10. Hapeville Charter (3-0)

Class AAA

1. Johnson-Savannah (3-1)
2. Sandy Creek (2-2)
3. Beach (5-0)
4. Cross Creek (1-3)
5. Monroe (1-1)
6. Wesleyan (4-0)
7. Oconee County (4-0)
8. Cedar Grove (3-1)
9. Hart County (2-1)
10. Monroe Area (0-0)

Class AA

1. Westside-Augusta (3-2)
2. Spencer (1-0)
3. Thomson (0-0)
4. Columbia (4-0)
5. Sumter County (3-0)
6. Putnam County (2-0)
7. Drew Charter (2-1)
8. Providence Christian (4-1)
9. North Cobb Christian (1-1)
10. Washington (1-2)

Class A D-I

1. King’s Ridge (3-1)
2. Mt. Vernon Presbyterian (5-1)
3. Mt. Bethel (5-0)
4. Social Circle (2-0)
5. Mt. Pisgah (3-1)
6. Tallulah Falls (3-1)
7. Paideia (3-3)
8. Darlington (0-0)
9. Woodville-Tompkins (3-2)
10. Athens Christian (3-1)

Class A D-II

1. Greenforest (2-2)
2. Christian Heritage (1-0)
3. Wilkinson County (1-0)
4. Portal (4-0)
5. Dooly County (0-0)
6. Charlton County (0-0)
7. Calhoun County (1-1)
8. Manchester (0-0)
9. Chattahoochee County (2-0)
10. Hancock Central (0-1)

With holiday tournaments in full swing, plenty of heavyweight bouts took place this week at the Jared Cook Classic, Holiday Hoopsgiving and Hard in the Paint to name a few. Two teams were knocked off their perch as two new number ones rise in their respective classifications.

Class 7A had a busy week with juggernauts clashing. No. 1 Wheeler avenged last year’s Elite 8 overtime loss to last week’s Class 6A No. 1 Grovetown, 75-65 at Holiday Hoopsgiving as USC-signees Arrinten Page (26) and Isaiah Collier (23) combined for 49 points while Iowa State-signee Jelani Hamilton netted 16 points. No. 2 McEachern fell to nationally ranked Duncanville, TX 78-69 before beating Memphis East, TN 72-56 at Memphis HoopFest. The Indians returned home to beat No. 5 Newton at Hard in the Paint 58-52 after the Rams had beaten Grovetown 67-61, MJ Whitlock scoring 24 points and UConn-signee Stephon Castle netting 19. No. 4 Grayson rises after wins over Class 6A No. 6 Etowah (66-53), Class 5A No. 4 Tri-Cities (95-65) and Grissom, AL (79-53). Gicarri Harris poured in 27 points, 20 rebounds and 5 assists in the win over Tri-Cities at the On The Radar Thanksgiving Showcase. No. 6 Pebblebrook slips two spots following an 0-2 week at Holiday Hoopsgiving, losing to Gonzaga, DC 72-63 and Class 5A No. 1 Kell 74-72. No. 10 Osborne holds tight after a 3-1 week saw the Cardinals drop to Class 4A No. 4 Fayette County 75-71 at OTR. South Gwinnett (3-1) and Berkmar (3-2) exit the polls. The Comets lost 56-55 to St. Francis at the Centennial Classic while the Patriots were blown out by TL Hanna, SC 79-49 in the Jackson EMC Semifinals. No. 8 Parkview resurfaces after strong wins over Buford 58-56 and Tucker 57-53, Jacob Wilkins going for 27 points, 7 rebounds and 4 blocks in the win against Buford. Five-star safety Mike Matthews returned from the gridiron to start his junior season. The playmaker contributed 12 points against Tucker. No. 9 Archer enters the rankings behind Kahmare Holmes. The Lake Norman Christian, NC transfer has averaged 16.6 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 3 steals and 1.2 blocks. The Tigers are coming off wins over Hillgrove 71-51 at the Jared Cook Classic and earned an 84-68 win against a Caleb Wilson-less Holy Innocents’ at the North Georgia Showcase.

Class 6A continues to struggle against other classifications and out of state competition, leading to a new number one this week. As a whole, last week’s Top 10 went 7-14. No. 2 Grovetown is riding a four-game losing streak, annihilated by a previously winless Buford in a state championship rematch, 80-56 at the Jared Cook Classic as the Wolves buried 15 threes and shot 63% over the final three quarters. The Warriors then ran into Class 7A buzzsaws No. 5 Newton (67-61) and No. 1 Wheeler (75-65). No. 1 Alexander takes the top spot for the time being after going 2-0 in Alabama at the N2Hoops Invitational, beating Eufaula 78-47 and Austin 47-42. Braedan Lue led the way vs. Eufaula with 23 points while Chattanooga-signee Noah Melson added 18 points. No. 4 Lanier moves up three spots following a 2-2 showing at The Kevin Brown Memorial Tip-Off Classic in Washington, Ill. The Longhorns’ biggest win came against Joliet West, IL 82-74, erasing a 10-point deficit as Jayce Nathaniel netted 25 points and Tahai Morgan chipped in 18. No. 5 Langston Hughes holds onto their spot after a 64-59 loss at Class 2A No. 2 Spencer. No. 6 Etowah falls two spots after a nightmare week against stiff competition. The Eagles, now 0-4, lost twice at the Jared Cook Classic, beat by Class 7A No. 4 Grayson 66-53 and Class A D-II No. 1 Greenforest 69-41 before getting blown out by Gonzaga, DC 79-50 at Holiday Hoopsgiving. No. 7 St. Pius X went 1-1 at the Notre Dame Thanksgiving Invitational while No. 8 Marist lost both games. No. 10 Paulding County is clinging onto a spot in the Top 10 after losing 66-65 at Class 2A No. 9 North Cobb Christian. Sequoyah (2-1) drops out of the rankings following a 70-53 loss to Class A D-I No. 5 Mt. Pisgah, but more significantly saw Alabama Huntsville-signee Preston Parker go down with an ankle injury that will cost him an extended amount of time. No. 9 North Forsyth breaks into the poll after finishing as runner-up at the Raider Classic, losing 65-50 to Class A D-I No. 3 Mt. Bethel.

No. 1 Kell had a big week in Class 5A, knocking off Class A D-II No. 1 Greenforest in double overtime at Holiday Hoopsgiving 67-63 behind Peyton Marshall’s 19 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists along with Cannon Richards’ 17 points and 9 rebounds. The Longhorns then edged Class 7A No. 6 Pebblebrook 74-72, Marshall again double-doubling with 22 points and 11 rebounds while Richards and CJ Brown scored 15 apiece. No. 2 Eagle’s Landing held on at Southwest DeKalb 54-48. No. 3 Hiram is up a spot even after a 62-61 overtime loss to Class 3A No. 1 Johnson-Savannah at the Joe Greene Classic. No. 4 Tri-Cities was rocked by Class 7A No. 4 Grayson 95-65 at OTR before splitting at the Florida Get Down, scoring a 66-55 win over Jones, FL after losing to Oak Ridge, FL 77-62. No. 6 Jones County defeated Class 4A No. 9 Westside-Macon 66-54 at the HypeSouth Hardwood Invitational, Daethan Harris (23), Jaden Stanley (22) and Jaylen Sanford (15) powering the offense. No. 9 Tucker lost 57-53 to Class 7A No. 8 Parkview. Chapel Hill (1-3) exits the poll with a 64-56 loss to Griffin. No. 10 Lithonia debuts at 5-0, coming off wins over Douglass (60-49) and Dacula (61-41).

Avante Nichols scored the go-ahead bucket as Class 4A No. 1 McDonough survived Class 3A No. 1 Johnson-Savannah at the HypeSouth Hardwood Invitational, 63-61. Nichols finished with 17 points while Da’Avion Thomas added 12. No. 8 Baldwin tumbles four spots after a 45-44 buzzer beating loss at Warner Robins at HypeSouth, playing without Rudolph Satcher. No. 4 Fayette County leaps five spots with an 83-66 win at Union Grove and a 75-71 victory at OTR against Class 7A No. 10 Osborne. RJ Kennedy has been scorching hot, the senior guard thrusting himself into the Class 4A Player of the Year conversation averaging 25.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, 4 assists and 2.8 steals through his first five games. No. 9 Westside-Macon slips two spots after losing 66-54 to Class 5A No. 6 Jones County at HypeSouth.

Class 3A is starting to look very different. No. 1 Johnson-Savannah takes over the top spot. The Atomsmashers have proven they can punch above their weight class, knocking off Class 5A No. 3 Hiram 62-61 in overtime at the Joe Greene Classic as Antonio Baker took over down the stretch with 20 of his game-high 22 points in the second half. The Atomsmashers opened the week with a 64-60 win over last week’s No. 8 Dougherty (1-3) who drops out of the poll. Johnson-Savannah nearly toppled Class 4A No. 1 McDonough at the HypeSouth Hardwood Invitational on Saturday, but fell short 63-61. No. 2 Sandy Creek split at the Spartan Turkey Jam, beating Huntsville, AL 65-58 before losing 52-44 to host Mountain Brook, AL, giving way to Johnson-Savannah to usurp their position. No. 3 Beach went 2-0 at Joe Greene, slipping past Lithia Springs 46-41 before boat racing Dougherty 69-40, who saw Jawuan Jinks injured on the first play of the game. Shamarrie Hugie dumped in 25 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 block against the Trojans while James Leach recorded 17 points, 19 rebounds and 3 blocks. Johnson-Savannah gets the slight nod over Beach due to strength of schedule at this point of the season. No. 4 Cross Creek defeated Augusta Christian 68-66 for their first win of the year. No. 6 Wesleyan and No. 7 Oconee County continue to climb, both going 2-0 at the Ray Tucker Classic. Wesleyan beat Adairsville 76-57 and Excel Christian 62-57 while Oconee County beat the same opponents, Excel Christian 108-96 in double overtime and Adairsville 65-48. Along with Dougherty, Thomasville (1-4) exits the poll. AJ Dent has been outstanding, but the Bulldogs haven’t hit their stride just yet. They went 0-2 at the Florida Get Down, losing in double overtime to Cleveland, TN 70-61 and beat by Blake, FL 61-49, Dent finishing with 30 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 steals. No. 8 Cedar Grove bursts into the rankings following a 60-53 win over Class A D-I No. 7 Paideia at OTR. Jaylen Adside finished with 22 points and 10 assists while 6-foot-5 freshman Emmanuel Green collected 21 points and 12 rebounds. Harlim Perine, another freshman, contributed 10 points. No. 9 Hart County represents the third team from Region 8 to make it into the poll. The Bulldogs went 2-0 at the Billy Wade Classic, beating Class A D-I No. 10 Athens Christian 72-56 and Monsignor Donovan 56-55, Tahj Johnson racking up 15 points, 17 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 4 blocks.

No. 2 Spencer scored a big win in Class 2A, defeating Class 6A No. 5 Langston Hughes 64-59, Tony Montgomery scoring 16 points while Tycen McDaniels and Gary Gaither each scored 13 points and Antonio Cochran pitched in 11. No. 4 Columbia went 4-0 in the Bahamas while No. 5 Sumter County survived Leesburg, FL 53-52 at the Florida Get Down. No. 6 Putnam County outlasted Class A D-II No. 10 Hancock Central 63-62 in overtime. No. 8 Providence Christian narrowly lost to Class A D-I No. 3 Mt. Bethel 63-60 in the Raider Classic Semifinals. No. 10 Washington is down a spot with a 74-72 loss to Creekside. Butler (0-1) is out due to inactivity. No. 9 North Cobb Christian resurfaces after beating Class 6A No. 10 Paulding County 66-65. Albert Wilson has been unstoppable to start the season, the 6-foot-6 senior averaging 29.5 points, 11.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks over his first two games.

The race for the top spot in Class A D-I is getting tight. No. 1 King’s Ridge drilled Gainesville 89-55 at Truett McConnell, 6-foot-10 William Jobe breaking out with 25 points. No. 2 Mt. Vernon Presbyterian hangs on in the two-hole after beating Houston, TN 72-66 at Memphis HoopFest before returning home and losing to Denmark 50-47 at the Jared Cook Classic. No. 3 Mt. Bethel won the Raider Classic, picking up nice wins over Class 2A No. 8 Providence Christian 63-60 and Class 6A No. 9 North Forsyth 65-50 in the title game. No. 4 Social Circle kept their winning streak against Walton County foes alive, holding off Walnut Grove 73-70 behind Lamarius Jackson’s 30 points. No. 5 Mt. Pisgah climbs three spots with a 70-53 win over last week’s Class 6A No. 10 Sequoyah. No. 6 Tallulah Falls lost 75-48 to TL Hanna, SC in the Jackson EMC Championship. No. 7 Paideia lost to Stephenson 61-47 and Class 3A No. 8 Cedar Grove 60-53 before rebounding with a 73-57 win over KIPP Atlanta at Hard in the Paint. No. 9 Woodville-Tompkins fell 72-68 at Brunswick while Dublin (0-1) drops out of the Top 10 with a 42-38 loss to Houston County at the HypeSouth Hardwood Invitational. No. 10 Athens Christian breaks into the rankings coming off a 59-53 win against Hebron Christian.

Class A D-II No. 1 Greenforest hammered Class 6A No. 6 Etowah 69-41 at the Jared Cook Classic before losing a classic in double overtime to Class 5A No. 1 Kell 67-63 at Holiday Hoopsgiving. Joseph Thomas saved No. 4 Portal against Forest Park at the Joe Greene Classic, pouring in 27 points on 6 threes as the Panthers survived 58-56 in overtime, Elijah Coleman securing the victory with the game-clinching steal. No. 10 Hancock Central pushed Class 2A No. 6 Putnam County to the brink before falling on the road in overtime 63-62. Macon County (0-0) slides out of the poll to make way for No. 9 Chattahoochee County who enters after a 57-55 win at Shaw.