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Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Take 10: Best 2008 State Tournament Basketball Championship Week Moments
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Well, Championship Week is over. Those of you who made it to Gwinnett Arena or Macon Coliseum (maybe both, for the particularly ambitious) saw some great games and 10 champions crowned. And at Take Ten, we still haven’t stopped talking about it all. So we thought we’d take the chance to reflect on the best moments from the week, the ones we will remember when we’re telling people about it years from now. These aren’t ranked.
10. Carrollton shows class
After losing a tough championship game to Kendrick 79-67, Carrollton’s girls were called to claim their runner-up award. Afterward, the team stayed on the court and applauded the Cherokees as they held up their championship trophy.
9. Pearce jumps out of the building
In the second half Wednesday, Turner County’s Tray Pearce drove down the middle of the lane and appeared to get his elbow up to the rim while leaping toward the basket. He nearly jumped completely over a Wilkinson County defender before clanging the ball off the back iron. The crowd didn’t stop buzzing for close to 5 minutes.
8. Wesleyan girls welcome boys to the court
After winning their state title, Wesleyan’s girls lined up with the school’s cheerleaders to cheer the boys on as they ran onto the court. It was a good display of the camaraderie between the two teams, both of which won championships.
7. A senior bows out
With 2 minutes left in a season-ending 89-65 semifinal loss to Wesleyan, Savannah Christian coach Toy Byrd pulled senior Kaila Parham out of the game. As she walked to the bench for the final time in her career, the Raider fans gave her a standing ovation, and she gave Byrd a long hug before sitting down.
6. Smith gives encouragement
After beating East Laurens for the state title, Wesleyan star Tanner Smith walked over to the Falcons bench and spoke to each player on the opposing team. It appeared to be more than just saying “Good game,” as he went down the line.
5. Wheeler vs. Norcross
Just seeing this game start was a big moment because it was so heavily anticipated. This was an incredible showcase for basketball in the Atlanta area. You’d be hard-pressed to go anywhere in the country and find a game between two high school teams from the same metro area with a deeper talent pool on the floor than this one. The fact that it was also a great game was just icing.
4. Williams refuses to lose
It’s a little longer than a moment, but Stephenson’s Jylisa Williams scoring 17 points in the fourth quarter to lift her team from an eight-point deficit to win her first state title should be mentioned. Her teams had lost in the semifinals for three consecutive years, and she made sure she made this opportunity count.
3. Hicks finally lets up
Kendrick coach Sterling Hicks coached furiously for four quarters in the title game, yelling, never giving in even though his team was mostly in control during the final period. But with 7 seconds left, you could finally see that he allowed himself to smile, and his girls won the championship.
2. It was Destiny, almost
When Randolph-Clay’s Destiny Mitchell snuck inside and hit a layup as the buzzer sounded in the semifinals against Paideia, it completed a six-point comeback in the final 28 seconds and sent the game to overtime. The Lions regrouped and won in the extra session, but it was tough to forget Mitchell being swarmed after the big basket.
1. Thompkins celebrates
After Wesleyan won its title the team rushed the floor, but Howard Thompkins wasn’t immediately with them. The senior stood by himself on the court for a moment, his hands raised toward the roof and his eyes closed in emotional celebration of the victory.
Go on. Take Ten. What will you always remember from Championship Week? What were the moments that caught your eye, even if it didn’t involve your team? We’d love to hear about it.
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