It seemed apparent entering the Class AAAAA state tournament that opponents would try to slow down Jackson-Atlanta guard Marquavis Carter and take their chances with his teammates.
That was exactly what Columbia set out to do in Friday’s first-round matchup at Jackson. The Eagles were able to contain Carter for most of the night, but former teammate T.J. Boykin burned them as Jackson took a 57-49 win.
Boykin and Carter each scored 15 points for the Jaguars (25-2), who remained unbeaten at home and advanced to the second round after an opening-round exit last year.
“I was hoping that we were going to play them in the state playoffs,” said Boykin, who sparked a 9-0 run early in the fourth quarter as Jackson took the lead for good. “When I heard we were going to play them, I was real excited. I just wanted to win, and this feels good.”
Demari Johnson scored 11 and Timpa Ogoun 10 for Jackson, which trailed 40-39 after Columbia (19-10) opened the fourth period with an 8-0 run, capped by a 3-pointer from A.J. Bey with 6:50 left.
Boykin stopped the run with a bucket to put Jackson ahead 41-40, and buried a 3-pointer with 5:21 to go, pushing the lead to six. Carter’s two free throws moments later bumped the margin to eight. Columbia got as close as three in the final 4:30, but did not pull even again.
“You’ve got two good teams going head to head with each other, and it all boils down to who’s executing and making shots,” said Columbia coach Phil McCrary. “They just made a few more shots than we did.”
The first half was dominated by defense, as the two teams in one six-minute stretch combined for 12 turnovers and violations. It looked disjointed at times, but Jackson was able to keep Columbia from establishing any offensive continuity.
“We played our brand of basketball and that was important,” said Jackson coach Travis Williams. “We’ve been playing well all year, but this needed to be a statement. Columbia is known as one of the best programs in the state. Hopefully we can build off this and just keep fighting.”
Jackson led by as many as eight in the first half, that coming courtesy of a 14-5 run in the middle stages of the second quarter, a stretch that included two baskets each from Boykin and Carter.
Lorenzo McGhee scored 18 and Bey 11 for the Eagles.
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