GHSA state championship HQ, Friday
Friday
Class 3A Girls
Cross Creek 56, Greater Atlanta Christian 44
Coming Saturday: This years’ Hancock Central team is a bit different than the one that took last year’s championship
Saturday
10 a.m., A Public Girls: Clinch County vs. Calhoun County
12:30 p.m., A Public Boys: Towns County vs. Hancock Central
3 p.m., AAASP (Houston County Sharks vs. Gwinnett County Heat)
5:30 p.m., 7A Girls: Marietta vs. Woodstock
8:00 p.m., 7A Boys: Milton vs. Berkmar
Class 3A Boys
Cross Creek 57, Sandy Creek 49
Class 6A Girls
Westlake 64, Carrollton 46
7:30 p.m.
Class 6A Boys
Wheeler 71, Kell 61
Thursday
Class AA girls
Josey 47, Fannin County 42
Preview
Josey (19-6) vs. Fannin County (23-4)
Josey hopes transition defense is up to par and helps the Eagles to their first state title since 1998. Clutch and game-changing defense has been a hallmark this season, led by seniors Jamirah Mitchell and Deajah Houck, part of the 2018 runner-up team.
Fannin County came up with a lifetime play to beat Butler in a semifinal, a steal and a long pass and a buzzer-beating layup lifting the Rebels past Butler.
The Rebels are a bit a surprise finalist, having started out 6-4 and then having some layoffs. But one 16-game winning streak later, here they are, led by Florida State signee Makayla Timpson.
Class AA Boys
Pace Academy 73, Columbia 42
Preview
Columbia (21-6) vs. Pace Academy (27-1)
A battle of powers, with a team that went to eight straight championship games – the streak ended in 2014 – and one with consecutive state titles in different classes right after that.
Former Miller Grove head coach Sharman White now leads Pace, White with six straight 4A titles to his credit. The defending champs haven’t lost since the season opener, to 3A finalist Sandy Creek.
Pace won the regular-season meeting 67-56 in mid-January, and averages almost 70 points a game.
Class 5A Girls
Woodward 62, Forest Park 59
Preview
Woodward (21-1) vs. Forest Park (24-5)
The defending 6A champion is taking on a team that won three 3A titles in the late 1990s.
Woodward has two wins over Forest Park this season, and is led by underclassmen Sydney Bowles and Sara Lewis. Bowles had 38 in one meeting with the Panthers.
The War Eagles won playoff games by 45, 31, 11, and 23.
Forest Park, the No. 2 team in Region 2, beat Warner Robins 51-25 in the second round, and average 57 points a game, plus seven blocks.
Class 5A Boys
Eagles Landing 81, Tri-Cities 69
Preview
Tri-Cities (23-4) vs. Eagles Landing (26-1)
Eagles Landing won the 4A title in 2013, and Tri-Cities took the 6A championship in 2019.
Tri-Cities knocked off perennial contender St. Pius 73-71 in the third round.
Eagles Landing has at least 21 wins in seven seasons in an eight-season span, and are going for its first title since 2013. Junior AJ Barnes and sophomore David Thomas are the keys along with senior Jaylon Hand.
Wednesday
Class A Private Girls
Hebron Christian 51, St. Francis 46, OT
Hebron Christian avoided the late-game slump, and St. Francis couldn’t.
The Lions outscored the Knights 5-0 over the final 2:21 for a 51-46 win in overtime Wednesday in the GHSA Class A Private girls championship game at the Macon Coliseum.
It was the first of 17 championship games at the Coliseum.
Hebron Christian and second-year head coach Jan Azar, formerly of Wesleyan High dominance, finish 29-2 in giving her a 14th state title, while St. Francis finished 23-5.
The Knights didn’t take much advantage of a horrid Hebron start, the Lions going 0 for 8 from the floor in the first quarter. But they trailed only 6-5.
Hebron the marched out to a 10-point second-quarter lead, but couldn’t pull away, St. Francis outscoring Hebron 24-22 in the second half, and forcing overtime with two free throws from Mia Moore with three-tenths of a second left in regulation after Hebron took the lead on Malia Fisher’s bucket low with 12 seconds left.
The game was tied six times with six lead changes. Both teams had one more turnover than assist, but Hebron had four more assists than St. Francis.
Fisher had a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds, Jessie Parish with 11 rebounds and one point short of joining her. Nicole Azar added 11.
Moore had 18 and Erica Moon 14 points and five steals. for St. Francis.
Preview
Hebron Christian (28-2) vs. St. Francis (22-4)
Hebron Christian is led by former Wesleyan head coaching legend – and former Mount de Sales assistant under her aunt, Lynn Hatcher – Jan Azar, who is in her second at HC and won her 600th game 13 months ago. Last year, the Lions lost in an ugly – from the play to officials to scorebook problems - semifinal to Holy Innocents. The Lions are on a 22-game winning streak.
St. Francis took care of Hebron Christian’s hopes for a rematch with Holy Innocents with a 58-50 semifinal win, while also beating Azar’s former school in the second round.
Hebron Christian has 10 seniors. St. Francis lists 11 players on the roster. And Azar returns to Macon with more state titles than any coach in history, 13, and a winning percentage in the mid 80s.
Class A Private Boys
Mt. Pisgah 43, Holy Innocents 41
Kasheem Grady’s off-balance 20-footer at the buzzer gave Mt. Pisgah its first lead since the first few minutes of the third quarter, and a state championship.
Mt. Pisgah’s 29-28 lead became a deficit with 4:29 left in the third quarter, and the deficit grew to seven in the quarter ,and was eight with 2:11 left in the game when Walker Wolf’s layup made it 41-33.
The Golden Bears struggled on the offensive end the rest of the way, with a missed free throw, and three turnovers.
Nate Gordon’s jumper with a half-minute left tied it, and Grady came up with a steal in the final seconds at the top of the key, dribbled downcourt, and put up a gliding jumper that was money for the title.
There were five lead changes in a game where eight points was the biggest margin.
Nate Gordon had 14 points and 10 rebounds to lead to lead Mt. Pisgah (27-6), JoJo Peterson with 11. Grady had only eight points on 3-of-11 shooting – 0 for 5 on 3s – and picked up his lone steal at the best time ever.
Landon Kardian had 14 for Holy Innocents (16-4).
Preview
Holy Innocents (16-3) vs. Mt. Pisgah (26-6)
Holy Innocents has won eight games in a row, four less than Mt. Pisgah.
The Golden Bears won their first region title in nearly 25 years, and handled playoff competition by 18, 6, 10 and 13 points. The Patriots won by 27, 12, seven and nine, the latter on the road over Christian Heritage, which ended FPD’s season a round earlier.
Class 4A Girls
Carver-Columbus 70, Cairo 54
Cairo had a lead early in the second quarter, handling everything Carver-Columbus had to offer.
Then came a 16-0 run, keyed by Clemson commit Kionna Gaines. She finished with 24 points and nine rebounds as Carver kept control and basically cruised in theirlatest championship.
The Tigers didn’t play with the rust perhaps expected of a team having played many fewer games than usual, and the defense sparked the surge. Cairo was wracked by 31 turnovers in suffereding only their second loss of the year.
Ambria Vicks and Leah Perry had double-doubles for Cairo, Vicks with 19 points and 14 boards and Perry with 12 and 11. D’Miya Beacham had 16 points and Enyshuan Jones 10 for Carver.
Preview
Carver-Columbus (14-2) vs. Cairo (18-1)
Cairo hasn’t won a state title since Reagan was president, and Carver-Columbus is looking for its second in three years.
Clemson signee Kionna Gaines leads Carver with 20 points and seven rebounds.
Cairo lost only to Bainbridge to split the season series. The Syrupmakers haven’t been a major player in awhile, not reaching even the semis since winning the title n 1982.
Class 4A Boys
Game story in Coverage
Baldwin 54, Fayette County 43
Preview
Baldwin (16-0) vs. Fayette County (16-11)
There’s not much Baldwin hasn’t seen, in the postseason alone.
After dispatching Bainbridge by 14 and surviving Hardaway by two, the Braves picked up a program win over Miller Grove on the road by six. Next was wondering what McDonough would bring after winning 29-25 at Monroe. The Braves overcame a 27-15 halftime deficit to win by four.
Baldwin has found different ways to win different games with different players stepping up in different aspects. And second-year head coach Anthony Webb has had a quality career, having been a regular state contender when he was at Hancock Central for a little more than a dozen years.
Fayette County is better than the record, having played a tough schedule. The Tigers won playoff games by 27, 38, 14, and 19, playing at home in each round.
Head coach Andre Flynn has been in charge since 2000, going 2-22 his first season and reaching the semis four times, finishing second in 2019.