The Houston County Sharks claimed their seventh consecutive wheelchair basketball state championship Friday with a 39-17 victory over the Gwinnett Heat at the Macon Coliseum.
Senior Jordan Kozloski scored 19 points to lead the Sharks, including 11 in the first two quarters as Houston County moved out to a comfortable lead.
Houston County’s seven overall state titles are the most in the history of the championships, which began in 2004 and are a part of the American Association of Adapted Sports Programs. Gwinnett won its only championship in 2012, the year before the start of Houston County’s streak.
The Sharks’ Jacob Stevens scored the game’s first six points, and Kozloski scored nine in the second quarter of the six-quarter game to put the Sharks ahead 19-4. Kozloski and fellow senior Olando Hicks had four points each in the third quarter to give Houston County a 37-8 halftime lead. Seth Earley scored all eight of Gwinnett’s first-half points.
Houston County maintained at least a 20-point lead throughout the second half.
“They’ve both worked so hard, and for them to finish up their careers like they did tonight, I’m just proud of them,” Sharks coach Christy Jones said of her seniors. “They needed to go out on a good note, and they did. They performed up to and above our expectations.”
Stevens finished with 10 points for Houston County, while Hicks had six and Emmanuel Dawson had four.
“It’s very exciting,” Kozloski said. “It’s a great opportunity for us. We are a great big family with great energy. Thg Heat are great shooters, and we were able to get up and pull it out. It’s awesome.”
Earley led the Heat with 11 points, and Will Millikan had the other six.
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