Perhaps all the Lumpkin County boys needed all along with a little belief.
When new coach Jeff Steele arrived there for his first season, one of his missions was to get the team to believe it could win. That was a stretch for one of the least successful programs in Georgia basketball.
“We tried to change the mindset of the kids,” Steele said. “We knew the stigma that Lumpkin County basketball hadn’t been real competitive and we wanted to make them believe that if you put in the work, you deserve the results. We wanted them to expect to win and not settle for less.”
Steele had spent 18 successful seasons at Johnson and his team played in the state semifinals last year, losing to eventual champion Jonesboro. So he arrived with a level of accomplishments that made the players pay attention and buy into the message.
The list of “firsts” are impressive: First time playing for a region championship. First time hosting a state playoff game. First time to win 19 games.
“And it’s all the kids. It’s not me,” Steele said. “It’s been a blast to see them mature and see how they feel about everything and see that gleam in their eyes.”
Lumpkin County (19-10) had a late-season stumble with a four-game losing streak, but recovered in time to beat state-ranked Banks County in the Region 7-AAA semifinals before losing to East Hall in the final. The Indians knocked off North Murray 55-54 in the first round of the playoffs.
“They had some success in the summer league. I think we went 9-2,” Steele said. “We were able to build on that. I kept encouraging them to work hard. I kept telling them, the harder you work, the harder it is to surrender.”
The team is led by senior Jack Howard, a 6-foot-4 forward who averages 21 points. Howard is a good shooter and a good decision maker who has been selected to play in the North-South All-Star Game.
The other big chunk of the offense comes from Brandon Zarate, a 6-5, 240-pound senior who averages 17 points. Zarate is a physical player who is able to get position with his size.
Zack Pulley, a 6-3 junior, is the point guard and a well-round player who has seven triple-doubles this season. The other starters are guard Cal Thrailkill, a 5-8 senior who is a clutch 3-point shooter, and Mookie Anderson, a 5-10 senior who is the team’s defensive specialist.
Lumpkin will have a tough job in the second round when it travels to Augusta to play Laney (25-2).
“Right now we’re playing with house money,” Steele said. “We’re going to go over there and play hard and see what happens.”
Cedar Grove re-surfaces
The Cedar Grove boys have been lying in the weeds all year all season, emerging late to win the region championship and position themselves to be a player in the state tournament.
The Saints began the season in the state rankings, but fell aside after some early losses. It took a while for coach James Martin’s team to get its footing, partially because of the late addition of the squad’s football players and partially because it took a while for some of the newcomers to buy into the defense-first philosophy.
Last week the Saints stunned No. 3 South Atlanta in the Region 4-AAA semifinals and beat North Clayton in the region final, despite failing to score a point in the first quarter. Cedar Grove (19-7) romped to a 66-48 win over Dodge County in the first round of the state playoffs.
“Right now I think our confidence is pretty good,” Martin said. “We’ve settled in on what we’re trying to do.”
The Saints are led by forward Jelani Woods, a 6-foot-5 junior, who is an outstanding quarterback prospect who already has offers from Michigan, South Carolina and Louisville. Other standouts on the team include Jaquan Acie, Jamari Dean and Devon Barnes. But the Saints use a lot of players because they play hard and selflessly – or they don’t play.
Cedar Grove will host East Jackson on Saturday at 7 p.m.
Other second-round games on Saturday are:
South Atlanta at Callaway
Josey at Banks County
Morgan County at North Clayton
Jackson County at Jenkins
Westside Macon at Calhoun
Westside Augusta at East Hall
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