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Tuesday, January 8, 2008
10 reasons we’re hyping HS hoops
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
We all need our rest. We know that. And for many of you high school sports fans, winter is a time of hibernation between the Dome and spring practice. But at Take Ten, we don’t play any favorites. If there are high school athletes playing, we’re all over it. The Dome doesn’t mean an end for us, and it shouldn’t for you either. Here’s why you should rise from your winter doldrums and watch some high school basketball in Georgia.
10: It’s indoors — Yeah, yeah. Cold weather is part of the charm of football. Squash all of that. There’s nothing good about the cold, except that you can leave drinks and groceries in the car without them getting warm. Gyms are great places to hide when it’s freezing outside.
9: No band — Before the band parents start firing off e-mails, this isn’t a knock on the bands. But if you think watching a football game — when the band drowns out the crowd the entire time — is like watching an NFL films video with a soundtrack, basketball might be the sport for you.
8: Quick games — Football games start at 7:30 and usually end sometime between 10 and 10:30. With a basketball game, you can be in the gym at 7:30 and out by 9, still early enough to take the wife for a nice night on the town.
7: Girls play, too — Yes, basketball is gender-neutral. You can feel the harmony from here.
6: Squeaky shoes — We brought this up in a Take Ten last year, and some people thought we were crazy. They were right, but squeaky shoes are still a hallmark of basketball. We love that sound.
5: You can watch it from home — That’s right. You don’t even have to leave your couch, and it’s not just for the playoffs. In fact, ESPN will be in town Thursday night, broadcasting Norcross playing Helen Cox (La.).
4: See the next NBA star — Basketball players only have to go to college for one year, and then it’s off to the wonderful world of pro ball. Former Wheeler star J.J. Hickson (with N.C. State) looks like he might be the next in a long line of area players to make that leap. Two years from now, the guys you watch could be holding up an NBA championship trophy.
3: Atmosphere — You can’t get away from the crowd in a gym. There’s not even a pressbox where we can hide. You hear every scream, every foot stomp, every chant.
2: Talent pool — There’s no question Georgia is one of the best states for high school basketball. Right now, Dwight Howard (Orlando Magic) and Josh Smith (Atlanta Hawks) are certainly making that case. Next on the list: Derrick Favors (South Atlanta), Al-Farouq Aminu (Norcross), Chris Singleton (Dunwoody), Mfon Udofia (Miller Grove), among others.
1: Basically, it’s all in metro Atlanta — What you’ll notice about all those names is that they’re all in the metro area. The state of Georgia is filled with good players and teams, but there’s enough in the metro to keep you occupied. You don’t have to drive more than about 30 minutes to see some of the state’s best players.
Go on. Take Ten. Have we disturbed your sleep yet? Are you ready to forego R&R for a little roundball? Are there any good reasons we missed? Let us know. We expect to see you in a gym soon. We’re taking head counts.
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As duals near, teams tune up
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Wrestling writer Kurt Aschermann Jr. ranks the top wrestling teams in the state, regardless of class: Week of Jan. 7.
Pin it down and rank the rankings: Let us know who YOUR Top 10 are and how they stack up against Kurt’s picks.
Battlefield Duals
With state duals around the corner, several schools tuned up this past weekend with dual tournaments throughout the state. Collins Hill continued to make news nationally, finishing third at the Battlefield Duals in Alexandria, Va. On the tournament’s first day, the Eagles defeated Poquoson (Va.), 56-12; Berwick (Pa.), 44-25; Hayfield (Va.); and Maryland No. 1 McDonogh, 37-22. Advancing to the gold pool for the tournament’s final day, Collins Hill dropped two tight matches with Virginia’s No. 1 Colonial Forge, 31-29, and No. 2 Christiansburg, 33-29, before defeating Pennsylvania No. 5 Connellsville, 39-19 and No. 10 Chartiers Valley, 60-13. Thomas Knapp (145) and Joel Smith (135) each went 8-0, while 112-pound T.J. Mitchell went 6-1 with his only loss coming at 119 pounds. James Smithson (130); Nick Smith (171) and David Coffey (heavyweight) finished the tournament 6-2.
Pound For Pound Top 10 (Last week’s rankings in parenthesis)
1: Collins Hill (1) — Eagles impressive at Battlefield Duals, begin assault on Area 7 Friday.
2: Union Grove (2) — Second straight crown in Valdosta keeps Wolverines a solid No. 2.
3: Jefferson (4) — Domination of Chattahoochee Invite field too much to keep Dragons out of No. 3 slot.
4: Harrison (3) — Disappointing stop at Clash but still a dangerous dual team.
5: Pope (5) — Greyhounds took weekend off before hosting Area 6-AAAAA Duals.
6: Cass (6) — Colonels will be heavy favorite heading into Area 6-AAA Duals.
T7: Eastside (8) — Eagles wrestled like the Class AAAA front-runners in winning Brookwood Duals.
T7: Stockbridge (7) — Streaking Tigers get second straight tourney win in Alexander Invitational.
9: Gilmer (8) — Bobcats romp at Dawson County even without 171-pounder David Snider.
10: Lafayette (9) — Rockmart tourney champs heavy favorites in this weekend’s 4-AA Duals.
Brookwood Duals
Eastside solidified itself as a Class AAAA title favorite, winning the Brookwood Duals. The Eagles, who finished tied for second at last year’s Traditional tournament and third at state Duals, won with four undefeated wrestlers: Cody Durden (103), Joel Stafford (119), Jonathan Palmer (171) and Ardest Carter (189). Durden, a transfer and area champion from Newton County, along with Stafford and Jamarkus Griggs (4-1 at 112 pounds), form one of the more potent bottom three weights in Class AAAA. Northwest Whitfield also threw its name into the state-title conversation, finishing second after a 43-36 loss to Eastside in the tournament’s final. Kenny Michael went 5-0 to lead the Bruins, who also lost to Eastside in the third-place match in last year’s state duals. “I’m pleased with the way we wrestled,” Northwest Whitfield coach Allen Tucker said. “Winning this match is not as important as region duals.”
Chattahoochee Invitational
Jefferson blitzed the mostly-AAAA and AAAAA field at the Chattahoochee Invitational, winning the tournament by placing an absurd 13 of 14 wrestlers. Too bad for the Dragons’ only non-placer, 130-pound R.J. Ahearn, who ran into eventual 130-pound champ Ty Nielson in the quarters and a red-hot Gabe Howard of Centennial (five straight wins to finish third) in the wrestle-backs. Nielson of Milton stayed unbeaten at 26-0 with another dominant weekend at Chattahoochee, winning gold at 130 pounds. Nielson’s only blemish is a missed weight at the Dirty South Classic, a tournament he looked poised to win after upsetting defending state champion Phil Holloway.
Wildcat Invitational
The Wildcat Invitational was a star-studded tournament with potential state champions all over the mats at Valdosta High School. Union Grove’s Joey Lazor helped the Wolverines win their second consecutive tournament title, improving to 29-0 with a title at 130 pounds. Effingham County’s Josh Barnhill, in a tuneup to a possible 103-pound title in Class AAAA, blitzed the 103-pound field at Valdosta. Benedictine’s Shane Summerlin won the 119-pound title; defending state champion Justin Crozier (Union Grove) clinched the 125-pound crown; Bradley Banks (Union Grove) won at 160 pounds and Tift County’s Zach Dunn kept his name in the 171-pound discussion with a win over Union Grove’s Jack Roberts in the 171 final.
Takedowns
• Tucker ran away with the DeKalb County title, led by individual champions Pawlloes Belete (103), Melchisedac Lavergne (125), Mister Permenter (130), Nicholas Pegues (140), Carey Cloud (145) and Federico Guzman (152).
• Two counties away, Flowery Branch was wrapping up the Hall County Duals championship. The Falcons went 6-0 and dethroned two-time county champ West Hall with a 39-30 win in the final.
• North Gwinnett’s Travis Sheehy notched his 200th career win at the Brookwood Duals, picking up a second-period pin against Greenbrier.
• Stockbridge placed 12 wrestlers and won the Alexander Invitational. The Tigers got individual titles from Nathan Allen at 130 pounds and Ben Jones at 160 and runner-up finishes from five others, including 145-pound Chris Browning, who lost to the tourney’s outstanding wrestler, Daniel Domanico from Lovett.
• Gilmer had two champs - Dale Becker at 125 pounds and Hunter Barnes at 152 - and three runners-up in a win at Dawson County’s Amicalola Classic.
• McIntosh won the Mark Toomey Invitational at Groves High School thanks to five champs: Jarrod Chamblee (112), Richard Hughes (130), Carl Scheumann (152), Matt Carroll (215) and Sean Carney (285).
• Peachtree Ridge’s four placers at Chattahoochee were all champions, a first in the program’s history. Andrew Sartain won at 112 pounds, Matt Chapman at 160 and Sam Kuntz at 189, while Kendall Albert blew through the 140-pound field, winning an 8-0 major in the final against defending Class AAAA champion Matt Bridges of Cherokee.
• Lovett, trying to crash the party in Class AA and upend favorites Lafayette and Wesleyan next weekend in Macon and a month from now in Gwinnett, finished a strong second at the Alexander Invitational. Daniel Domanico won the 145-pound title and was named outstanding wrestler.
Pin it down and rank the rankings: Let us know who YOUR Top 10 are and how they stack up against Kurt’s picks.
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