While some of the state’s perennial powers may not be shy about turning away transfers who are seeking a greener pasture, South Atlanta coach Michael Reddick continues to use the guys in his own backyard to produce one excellent team after the other.
“We’re just a neighborhood team,” Reddick said. “We’ve just got a bunch of guys who love to play. They love each other and love to work together.”
And once again the Hornets are back among the elite teams in the state. No. 2 ranked South Atlanta takes a 19-5 record into the season finale at McNair on Friday night. Not even a 74-71 loss to North Clayton on Tuesday could prevent the Hornets from winning another subregion championship.
“We’re just trying to grow together and peak at the right time,” Reddick said.
South Atlanta is the true definition of a team. The Hornets have produced great players like Derrick Favors, who starts for the NBA’s Utah Jazz, and Nick Jacobs, who starts at Georgia Tech. But this year’s team doesn’t have a superstar and instead survives on the team concept that Reddick preached.
“We return the majority of our team from last year,” Reddick said. “We lost four seniors, but they all played the same position. We’ve had to make some adjustments but this is a good group, very solid.”
The Hornets don’t have a go-to guy and have had different players step up during the year. The players have accepted their role and strive to improve on last year’s third-round finish in the state playoffs. The top contributors include:
- Devontae Dean, the senior point guard was an all-state selection last year and holds the team together;
- Artavious Banks, a 6-foot-4 power forward who Reddick called his "warrior" and leads the team in rebounds;
- Frank Bailey, a junior point guard who works in tandem with Dean to get things going;
- Devonta Pullins, a junior guard who leads the team's balanced attack in scoring at 20-plus points per game;
- Korbian Bell, a 6-6 senior who is a solid all-around player;
- Tyler Thornton, a 6-7 junior with small forward skills;
- Orlando Bebee, the team's leading scorer last year and all-region player who provides instant offense.
The team is mature enough to know when things are going the wrong way. They called a team meeting at Christmas and challenged each other to work harder on defense and play with more intensity.
“Since then the team has been better,” Reddick said. Since January the team has lost only one game.
Here are some interesting games on the schedule this weekend:
Boys
Jenkins at Johnson, Saturday: No. 9 Johnson can clinch the Region 1-AAA Division B race with a victory over its area rival. Johnson (17-5) won the first meeting 66-59 and has put together a seven-game winning streak. No. 6 Jenkins (19-4) was knocked off by Islands on Tuesday and needs a win to achieve a tie. A coin flip would determine the top seed.
Calhoun at Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe, Friday: No. 1 Calhoun (22-0) is looking to complete a perfect season with a trip to play LFO (6-17). The Yellow Jackets, who have already clinched the Region 6-AAA title, needed overtime to survive a scare from Coahulla Creek on Saturday with Kaelan Riley totaling 16 points and 12 rebounds.
Girls
North Clayton at Maynard Jackson, Friday: No. 5 Jackson (22-1) can extend its winning streak to 21 games with a win over the Eagles. But North Clayton (12-5) will need to show serious improvement since its first meeting, which Jackson won by 20 points.
Kendrick at Southwest Macon, Friday: The No. 2 Cherokees (23-1) have won 19 straight games and can finished unbeaten in Region 2-AAA with a victory. Kendrick's pressure took its toll on Southwest in the first meeting and led to a 56-point win.
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