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Wednesday, March 7, 2007
Columbia meets challenge squarely
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Not since the second game of last season has a team from Georgia bested Columbia. There was a level of optimism that Riverdale had a legitimate opportunity to join East Hall in that exclusive club Wednesday night at Gwinnett Arena.
And for good reason. The Raiders bring a lot. They fell behind early, worked their way back into it by halftime and led by one late in the third quarter. You might think a twinge of doubt would trickle into the Eagles’ psyche.
Didn’t happen.
Instead, it was then that Columbia redoubled its effort on defense and tightened up its offense and, when it was over, the defending AAAA champions had a date with rival Tucker for the 2007 title Friday night.
A lot can be taken from the Eagles’ 51st consecutive victory, a 65-55 conquest. Foremost, Columbia just might be the best team in the state, Norcross included. No program has more serviceable depth than Columbia and no one uses his talent better than coach Phil McCrary.
You defend Lance Storrs, watch out for Jeremy Price. Turn your head, Travis Leslie is dunking on your head. And there is Anthony Isom, Jordan Lemons, Dante Harvey … you get the picture by now.
This is how good Columbia is: Storrs, the star headed for Georgia Tech, had exactly one basket.
Further, McCrary did not play Harvey, 6-foot-7 starting forward, for the first 10 1/2 minutes of the second half after he missed a dunk just before halftime.
Didn’t matter.
The beauty of Columbia is that McCrary and his staff refuse to let all the winning become mundane. They continually challenge their players, and the players continually, consistently answer the call.
Riverdale, which has had a strong season under coach Derrick Powell, had an edge over Columbia in this sense: The Raiders actually defeated the Eagles, 64-61 — in a preseason scrimmage.
Not a lot of stock is put into such encounters … unless you beat a team that has been highly unbeatable. “It was good for us because it gave us a lot of confidence going into the season,” Powell said. “It let us know we could play with them.”
One sizable difference Wednesday night was that Riverdale’s anchor, 6-foot-8 Chris Barnes, was out with a bad knee. A solid coaching job by Powell and a commendable collaborative effort by Barnes’ teammates — including younger brother Terrell — helped the Raiders advance to Wednesday night’s semifinals.
And Powell went into the game without Barnes but still feeling “really good” about his team. “Confident, relaxed, loose, focused,” he said. After a slow start, they performed that way, and with a passion and resilience that helped them climb all the way into a 44-43 lead late in the third quarter.
It was a fleeting moment for Riverdale. Price and Leslie, in particular, did it on the offensive end. But it was lock-down defense that carried the night. The openings that were present in the Raiders’ big run were sealed off. Shots were contested. And Riverdale appeared worn out. But there is no shame in losing to the best team in the state.
Tucker, which has twice lost to Columbia — once in a blowout, the other in overtime — stuck around to see the Eagles win another one.
Surely the Tigers exited the building in the final moments understanding their task in the championship game Friday is formidable.
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Take 10: Best title game performances
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
When state championships are on the line and history hangs in the balance, real competitors step up. Some have almost single-handedly willed their teams to championships; others have overcome adversity in doing so. Others still have won with blue-collar workman teams, devoid of superstars. With the postseason underway, and the Class AAAAA and AAAA championships at the Gwinnett Arena and AAA-A title games at the Macon Centreplex March 7-10, Take Ten looks back at some of history’s biggest championship performances.
10: Dunwoody boys, 2006 — An’Juan Wilderness’ 27 points, including 11 in the first four minutes, helped Dunwoody ruin top-ranked Westlake’s bid for a perfect season and repeat as AAA champion, 79-72. Zac Swansey chipped in 18 points for the Wildcats, who led 23-10 after a quarter and never looked back.
9: Tracey Tipton, 2006 — In just her first season as successor to the legendary Angie Hembree, the coach led Collins Hill’s girls to their second consecutive and fourth AAAAA championship in six years, against county rival South Gwinnett, 65-55. Miss Georgia basketball Maya Moore scored 32 points and grabbed 16 rebounds for the Eagles, who hadn’t lost to a Georgia opponent since 2004.
8: Darrin Hancock, Griffin, 1988 — He capped a four-game tournament run that included 107 points, 46 rebounds, 15 slam dunks and six blocked shots as the Bears beat Westover 70-63 for the AAAA championship. The 6-foot-6 sophomore not only was named the Journal-Constitution’s player of the year that season, but also was selected Mr. Georgia Basketball by the Atlanta Tipoff Club and was honored at the annual Naismith Banquet at the World Congress Center.
7: Cindy Brogdon, Greater Atlanta Christian, 1975 — The future Olympian and University of Tennessee star scored 39 points in the Spartans’ 55-44 Division B championship win over Clinch County. An excellent shooter, Brogdon missed a free throw in the closing seconds that would have given her 40. The point total was even more remarkable, considering it accounted for nearly three-quarters of the Spartans’ championship total. Brogdon led the Spartans to four finals, winning three.
6: William Witherspoon, Berkmar, 2000 — His 12 points weren’t all that many, but combined with eight rebounds and 12 assists, the senior guard jump started a 77-60 victory over Warner Robins and made the Patriots the first Gwinnett County team to win the then-largest classification of AAAA. Witherspoon’s performance punctuated the Patriots’ unbeaten run since Christmas and capped their 30-2 season, whose only losses were to nationally ranked teams.
5: Holy Innocents’ girls, 1999 — The Golden Bears didn’t just win their first title by demolishing highly regarded Buford 71-46, they did so without coach Buster Brown, who was serving a mandatory suspension for getting ejected from the semifinal. Even more remarkably, the Bears overcame a life tragedy: Bradley Evans, the brother of freshman Missy Evans and a close friend of many players, had died the day before the state tournament began.
4: Shea Carrington, Northeast Macon, 2002 — The 6-foot center’s game-high 21 points in the 2002 final, including four baskets in the third quarter, helped the Raiders not only erase a 15-point second-half deficit, but wind up winning 61-52 at the Macon Centreplex. The victory made up for the previous year’s loss in the final to Gainesville and interrupted the Red Elephants’ run of three titles.
3: James Forrest, Southside, 1991 — Though he scored 23 in a loss to Westover in the AAA title game, his 55 in a semifinal win over Dougherty two nights earlier had fans still roused. The year before, he netted 20 points in Southside’s championship victory over Columbia, capping a four-game tournament of 116 points.
2: Hart County girls, 1994 — The Bulldogs rallied from a nine-point deficit, overcame the first-quarter ejection of their leading scorer, and escaped a close call at the foul line with one second remaining to survive Dougherty 53-51 for their sixth consecutive championship and 104th consecutive victory against Georgia opponents.
1: Tramaine Allen, Wheeler, 2002 — He made just two shots in the final against Lakeside, but served notice the Wildcats deserved their first title since 1994, sinking a shot beyond half-court near the end of the first quarter. The long-range bomb sparked the Wildcats crowd and ignited their 69-55 victory.
Go on. Take Ten. What’s the best title game performance you can remember? And who do you expect to step up in this year’s girls and boys state tourneys?
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