In the roughly 16 weeks since the start of the 2017-18 basketball season, Class AAAA has seen its fair share of intriguing storylines. But no matter how much the standings (or rankings) vacillated throughout the classification this season, two-time defending state champion Upson-Lee (31-0) kept its footing firmly at the top. Head coach Darrell Lockhart and the Knights will open next season with their active 63-game winning streak, and regardless of next year, the program’s back-to-back perfect seasons have already put the Thomaston, Ga. school on the map. So has Tye Fagan, the (now legendary) senior guard that ‘quarterbacked’ the Knights to season-long perfection twice, and brought the program its first-two titles.
Defensive toughness has been a signature of the Upson-Lee program’s success these past two years, and it was put vividly on display this Saturday as the Knights went to man-to-man in the second half of their 70-54 win over St. Pius. Lockhart admitted that his team had opened the game with championship jitters in the first half, and it showed. Upson-Lee fell behind 33-25 before ending the half on a 7-0 run and bring it within a point.
Upson-Lee junior Travon Walker is a force, especially on defense, and he tallied five huge blocks, despite battling foul trouble. Still, it was the team’s commitment to man-to-man in the second half that energized the Knights and they were celebrating a 21-point lead with 1:17 still left in the game.
“It’s been magical,” said Lockhart. “We had our ups and downs, but we were able to win games. These kids are real special. I love them to death.”
SPALDING’S STORY
The Spalding girls became the hottest team in the classification and reached landmark achievements throughout their journey to the 2017-18 state crown. When head coach Tykira Gilbert arrived in 2016, she became the fourth different Jags head coach in just five years and the program had never been past the quarterfinals of the state playoffs.
This year’s team barely survived the quarters, but a game-winning buzzer beater lifted them mast Madison County 55-53. In the semis, the Jags toppled No. 1 Carver-Columbus 58-51, then capped the championship run with a 58-46 win over No. 2 ranked Henry County.
“This is the first state championship for girls ever in the city of Griffin,” Jaguars coach Tykira Gilbert pointed out following the game. “It’s a great feeling. I’m just so proud of my girls, so thankful for the coaches and the community. ... Defense, that’s what we continue to preach and that’s what it’s about, defense and rebounds. We knew we had to match their intensity because we knew they were going to come out strong.”
Defense helped Spalding limit the effectiveness of Auburn signee Brooke Moore of Henry County, and build sizable leads, like the 42-29 advantage they closed the third quarter with, and the 11-0 run they’d open the fourth quarter with to put them up 53-29.
Spalding’s 28-3 finish is the best record in school history and they will open next season with a 17-game winning streak and plenty of returning talent, including sophomore Corriana Evans who led the finals with 19 points and 17 rebounds.
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