Norcross survives Walton to advance

What Norcross’ boys lacked in execution they made up for with tenacity in Wednesday’s second round of the Class AAAAA playoffs against visiting Walton.

On a night both teams struggled, Denzail Jones’ running jump shot on the baseline with four seconds left helped lift the three-time defending champion Blue Devils over the Raiders, 64-61, and into Saturday’s quarterfinals against Wheeler at Carrollton.

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Johnny Crawford / jcrawford@ajc.com/Photographer

Norcross’ Denzail Jones gets a hug from teammate Tarriq Mohammad (1) after he hit the shot that gave the Blue Devils the lead with four seconds remaining vs. Walton.

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“They just got the shot they needed when they needed it,” Walton coach Joe Goydish said. “We were tied 61-61 with 16 seconds to go. What more could you ask for?”

Jones scored a team-high 17 points, and Marty Johnson followed with 16 for the Devils (27-2).

“We’re kind of emotionally drained,” Norcross coach Jesse McMillan said. “We knew if we played defense we had a chance to win.”

North Carolina State recruit Ryan Harrow scored 29 points to lead the Raiders, and Georgia Tech recruit Glen Rice scored 14.

Harrow tied the game at 34 with 3:46 left in the third quarter, and the Raiders (19-10) led by four three times early in the fourth. Johnson’s layup and ensuing foul shot put Norcross ahead 58-54 with 2:10 left. But Walton still had a final chances.

The Raiders’ last gasp came when Rice missed a long, desperation 3-point shot at the buzzer.