The M.L. King Day holiday was eventful for some of the better Class AAAAAA boys teams.
For example, third-ranked Westlake beat eighth-ranked Walton in two overtimes; Pebblebrook beat second-ranked Athens Christian of Class A; Marietta beat seventh-ranked Stephenson of AAAAA; and ,Hillgrove lost in overtime to No. 1-ranked Greater Atlanta Christian of AA. And fifth-ranked McEachern was pushed by Centennial and won 46-44.
In the Westlake game, played at the Hoops in Overdrive event at Centennial, Walton trailed by six in the final minute but got a 3-pointer from Juanye Colon and a three-point play by Nick Wells to tie it. But Westlake pulled it out 83-78. Westlake is 19-1.
Moving head, there are two big boys games tonight (Tuesday) in Region 4-AAAAAA –
Pebblebrook (13-4, 7-2) at McEachern (15-2, 7-1)
Marietta (16-3, 7-3) plays at Hillgrove (15-4, 9-2).
First some background, aside from the fact these are the region’s best four teams.
Pebblebrook is the only team among the four that has not been ranked in the Top 10 this season. The Falcons beat Athens Christian 73-67 on Monday at the Blue Collar Basketball MLK showcase at Berkmar.
Pebblebrook, looking for its first state-playoff berth since 2010, was 4-21 two seasons ago when new coach George Washington started a mostly freshman lineup. Two years later, five juniors start. Point guard Ty Hudson averages about 20 points and 5.5 assists. Trhae Mitchell, a 6-5 small forward, averages 15 points and eight rebounds. Derek Ogbeide, a 6-8 post player who came from Canada. He is averaging seven blocked shots per game. The three were offered scholarships from Kennesaw State.
Pebblebrook hasn’t beaten any of the other three Region 4 contenders. McEachern, ranked fifth in AAAAAA, won the first meeting between the two 65-58 on Jan. 1 despite Hudson’s 27 points.
Meanwhile, Hillgrove, ranked seventh, led Greater Atlanta Christian by 13 in the third quarter but failed to hold it as GAC, perhaps the state’s best team in any class, won 69-65 in overtime. GAC’s Isaiah Wilkins, who is bound for Virginia, scored 27 points. Hillgrove’s Kyle Castlin scored 24 points.
Hillgrove now faces Marietta, which is coming off Monday’s 41-39 victory over Stepheson at Centennial. Marietta trailed by 10 points in the fourth quarter. Raynere Thornton, a pretty good candidate for region player of the year, scored 20 points and had 15 rebounds. Hillgrove defeated Marietta 70-66 on Nov. 22.
