Buzzer-beaters, massive comebacks and surprising results highlighted this week’s Sweet 16 action. Here’s a brief recap of each of the games before the quarterfinals resume next week.
BOYS
R5 #2 Cartersville 58, R7 #1 Blessed Trinity 56 OT
A Blessed Trinity 3-pointer with 5 seconds left forced overtime at 48-48, but Cartersville stole the road victory in the extra period. T.J Horton led the way with 24 points and teammate Jaylon Pugh turned a 17-point performance. The Purple Hurricanes are one win away from reaching their first Final Four since the 1981 season.
R3 #1 Baldwin 60, R1 #2 Americus-Sumter 59
Charles Ubah drilled the game-winning 3-pointer with just 17.4 seconds left to send Baldwin to the quarterfinals. Baldwin trailed by as many as 11 points in the fourth quarter and Ubah’s deep ball was Baldwin’s only lead of the game.
R8 #1 St. Pius X 66, R5 #3 Troup County 46
St. Pius routinely got past Troup, taking a 34-25 halftime lead and 53-38 advantage at the end of the third quarter. Troy Stephens (17), Niko Broadway (12) and Everett Lane (11) each finished in double-figures for the Golden Lions.
R1 #3 Carver-Columbus 58, R4 #1 Woodward Academy 53
Carver-Columbus is the lone survivor of Region 1 as the No. 3 seed. The Tigers’ 23-18 halftime lead shrunk to 46-45 by the end of the third quarter, but Woodward Academy couldn’t complete the comeback and shot just 3-of-10 from the foul line.
R5 #1 Sandy Creek 72, R8 #3 Stephens County 53
Stephens County led 14-9 at the end of the first quarter before the Patriots heated up and closed out the victory by outscoring the Indians 26-12 in the final quarter. Jarred Godfrey led the way with a game-high 27 points.
R3 #2 Burke County 73, R1 #1 Westover 71
Burke County rallied from 17 points down to complete the improbable comeback.
R6 #1 LaFayette 53, R8 #2 Jefferson 51
The game remained close throughout and the teams entered the half locked 24-24. Dee Southern’s 19 points lifted LaFayette to victory as Jefferson came up empty on its game-winning three-point attempt at the buzzer.
R2 #1 Upson-Lee 52, R4 #2 Salem 44
The defending champs extended their state-best winning streak to 60 games. Tye Fagan netted 17 points and Travon Walker scored 12 for the Knights.
GIRLS
R7 #1 Marist 59, R5 #2 LaGrange 48
Marist trailed 18-17 after the first quarter, but outscored LaGrange 20-6 in the second frame and held off the Grangers to avenge last year’s 46-43 opening round loss.
R1 #2 Americus-Sumter 39, R3 #1 Burke County 25
Shidajah Johnson (10), Jykeira Long (10), Brianna Pope (9) and Deasia Ford (8) distributed the scoring as the Panthers defensively limited Burke County’s offense to their lowest output of the season.
R8 #1 Jefferson 62, R6 #2 Pickens 40
In a battle of Dragons, Jefferson was far superior. Host Jefferson built a 37-16 lead at the half and extended it to 52-29 before Pickens shrunk the deficit in the final quarter.
R4 #1 Henry County 82, R2 #2 Upson-Lee 61
Henry County jumped out to a 19-6 lead after the first quarter and was powered by junior Janiya Jones (24 points) and senior Brooke Moore (21 points.)
R8 #3 North Oconee 47, R5 #1 Sandy Creek 45
North Oconee was just 3-7 in its region this year and is still four games below .500 (12-16), nonetheless the Titans continue playing outstanding basketball and are the lone remaining No. 3 seed in the girls side of the Class AAAA Elite 8. Kya Watson (11), S.K. Kirby (9), Tatum Thomson (9) and Aubrey Moore (8) balanced the scoring and lifted the upset-minded Titans into the Elite 8.
R1 #1 Carver-Columbus 84, R3 #2 Baldwin 65
Carver-Columbus appears to have rediscovered their rhythm. The top-ranked Tigers led just 15-13 at the end of the first quarter, but quickly heated up, taking a 41-24 halftime lead and a 67-46 edge into the fourth quarter.
R8 #2 Madison County 59, R6 #1 Northwest Whitfield 46
Kayla McPherson scored 15 of her 18 points in the first half as Madison County took a 35-19 lead at the half. Teammate Jordan Bailey finished with a team-high 19 points as Sydney Armstrong contributed 9 points in the winning effort.
R2 #1 Spalding 63, R4 #2 Luella 56
Spalding is in the midst of arguably its most successful season in program history. When head coach Tykira Gilbert arrived in 2016, she became the fourth different head coach to lead the Jags in a five-year span. After falling in the first round of the 2016 playoffs, Spalding has now reached the Elite 8 for the second consecutive year, this time with a stellar 25-3 record.
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