The No. 1-ranked teams in Class AAAAAA boys and girls basketball got knocked out of the playoffs Wednesday night, setting up a wide-open set of semifinals on the schedule for Friday at Buford Arena.
Tucker’s boys and Lovejoy’s girls, both of which were state runners-up last season, were eliminated two games short of a return to the finals. Tucker lost to defending champion Tri-Cities 67-65 in a rematch of last year’s final, which Tri-Cities won on a 3-pointer at the buzzer. Lovejoy lost to Hughes 59-55, ending the Wildcats’ bid for a fourth consecutive trip to the semifinals.
Tri-Cities’ victory sets up an all-Fulton County semifinal matchup against Chattahoochee. They’ll be joined in the final four by South Cobb and Lanier (Gwinnett). Hughes’ girls will go to the semifinals with Forest Park of Clayton County and south Georgia schools Glynn Academy. No girls team from outside of metro Atlanta has won the championship in the second-highest classification since Glenn Hills in 2002, and only one boys team – Brunswick in 2015 – from outside of Fulton or DeKalb County has done it since 2003.
Here’s a look the semifinal matchups and how the teams got there:
Boys
*Tri-Cities vs. Chattahoochee, 8 p.m.: Tri-Cities won the first championship in program history last year after being eliminated in the quarterfinals the previous two seasons. This year, the third-ranked Bulldogs (26-5) were the No. 3 seed in the Region 5 tournament but won the tournament comfortably to earn the No. 1 seed for state. They have beaten Johns Creek, Houston County and Tucker in the playoffs by a combined 16 points. Tri-Cities is led by all-region players Peyton Daniels and Demetrius Rives. Chattahoochee (23-7), at No. 8 the lowest-ranked team to reach the semifinals, has won 11 consecutive games and is in the final four for the first time. The Cougars had close calls in the first two rounds against Alexander (69-66) and Heritage-Conyers (73-68) before beating Sequoyah 82-67 in the quarterfinals. Cameron Sheffield, a 6-foot-4 forward who has signed with Rice, is the Region 7 player of the year.
*Lanier vs. South Cobb, 4 p.m.: Fourth-ranked Lanier (22-5) is in the semifinals for the first time after going 1-3 in three previous trips to the playoffs. The Longhorns have won 14 consecutive games since a loss to Class AAAAAAA quarterfinalist North Gwinnett on Jan. 4 and have not lost to a AAAAAA team this season. Sion James, a 6-5 guard who signed with Tulane, is a two-time Region 8 player of the year. He had 23 points and eight rebounds Tuesday night in a 58-55 overtime victory over Hughes. No. 2 South Cobb (28-2), in the semifinals for the first time since 2017 and fourth time overall, lost to McEachern in the second game of the season and to Sequoyah in mid-January in Region 6 play but is on a 10-game winning streak. The Eagles have beaten Winder-Barrow, Brunswick and Evans in the playoffs by an average of 24 points. Emon Washington, an Illinois State signee, is the Region 6 player of the year.
Girls
*Hughes vs. Glynn Academy, 2 p.m.: Hughes is in the semifinals for the first time since 2013 and second time in program history after its victory over Lovejoy. The sixth-ranked Panthers started the season 1-4 but are 24-1 since, including 17 consecutive Region 5 victories after losing the region opener to Alexander. Sophomore guard Ta'Mia Stargell is the region player of the year. Fifth-ranked Glynn Academy (25-4) was a quarterfinalist last season but is in the semifinals for the first time since 1995 and fifth time overall. Zoesha Smith, a 5-11 forward who signed with Georgia and is the Region 2 player of the year, averages 21.2 points, 12.8 rebounds, 2.7 steals and 2.0 blocks. She had a season-high 38 points in a 67-50 victory over Sequoyah in the second round. The Red Terrors' four losses came against Valdosta (45-37 on Dec. 13) and three Florida opponents, and they are 13-0 since the start of 2020.
*Valdosta vs. Forest Park, 6 p.m.: No. 2 Valdosta (28-2) and No. 3 Forest Park (25-6) are the highest-ranked teams remaining after Lovejoy's loss, and both lost in the semifinals last season – Valdosta 69-46 to Lovejoy, and Forest Park 44-38 to Lanier. Valdosta suffered back-to-back losses in late November to Buford and Dacula but is 25-0 since, including playoff victories over Evans, Cambridge and Dacula by an average of 28 points. Senior guard Ja'Mya Johnson, the Region 1 player of the year, averages 15.2 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 4.1 steals. Forest Park is in the semifinals for the seventh time in 11 seasons but seeking its first championship since 1970. Sania Feagin is a five-star recruit and the highest-rated junior in Georgia, according to ESPN. She averages 17.3 points, 10.2 rebounds and 3.6 blocks for the Panthers, who have won their three playoff games by an average of 29.3 points.
Boys
Quarterfinal scores
Tri-Cities 67, Tucker 65
Chattahoochee 82, Sequoyah 67
Lanier 58, Hughes 55
South Cobb 85, Evans 61
Semifinal schedule
(All games Friday at Buford Arena)
(R5 #1) Tri-Cities vs. (R7 #1) Chattahoochee, 8 p.m.
(R8 #1) Lanier vs. (R6 #1) South Cobb, 4 p.m.
Girls
Quarterfinal scores
Hughes 59, Lovejoy 55
Glynn Academy 47, Johns Creek 36
Valdosta 57, Dacula 46
Forest Park 62, Douglas County 21
Semifinal schedule
(All games Friday at Buford Arena)
(R5 #1) Hughes vs. (R2 #1) Glynn Academy, 2 p.m. Friday
(R1 #1) Valdosta vs. (R4 #2) Forest Park, 6 p.m. Friday
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