Here’s a look back at some of the top stories from the week in Class AAAAA basketball:
*Heritage-Conyers boys slumping: The sixth-ranked Heritage boys team (15-5, 7-3) has hit its worst stretch of the season, losing four consecutive games after a 15-1 start. The Patriots lost 63-62 in overtime Tuesday against Salem, which got a career-high 36 points from Michael Green. Heritage's slump began with back-to-back losses to AAAAAA teams Rockdale County and Brookwood and continued with a 54-51 loss to fourth-ranked Cedar Shoals. However, the Patriots are still in position to earn a high seed in 8-AAAAA and make a run at the state tournament. Heritage returns to action at Clarke Central on Tuesday.
*Races taking shape in Region 1-AAAAA: While much of the action in Class AAAAA was postponed Friday because of the weather, the Columbus-area schools in 1-AAAAA were in full swing and produced some significant results. On the girls' side, fifth-ranked Carver-Columbus beat No. 7 Columbus 54-48. It was Carver's second win of the season in three meetings with the Blue Devils, giving the Tigers a two-game lead in the standings. The Columbus boys earned a split with a 65-54 upset of region-leading Carver in the second game. Carver's loss leaves three teams in the region with two losses and another with three losses.
*Brunswick girls upset by Camden County: The second-ranked Brunswick girls team (18-2, 7-2) fell into a tie for second place with South Effingham in Region 3-AAAAA when it lost to Camden County 49-43 on Friday. The loss ended Brunswick's 12-game winning streak. Brunswick was hurt by its 7-for-30 shooting at the free-throw line, according to the Brunswick News. Top-ranked Glynn Academy (20-1), which lost to Brunswick in a game that didn't count in the region standings, is 10-0 in 3-AAAAA.
*Miller Grove's Gilbert joins elite group: Miller Grove guard Alterique Gilbert became the fifth boys player in DeKalb County Schools history to be selected for the McDonald's All-American game when he received that honor earlier this week. Gilbert, a Connecticut signee averaging 20.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.0 steals and 5.9 assists, joins Dion Glove (Cedar Grove/Georgia Tech, 1997), Chris Singleton (Dunwoody/Florida State, 2008), Shaq Goodwin (Southwest DeKalb/Memphis, 2012) and Tony Parker (Miller Grove/UCLA, 2012) as DeKalb honorees. Porsha Phillips (Redan/Georgia) was selected to the girls team in 2006.
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