Senior’s 40-point game leads Grayson in upset of No. 7 Hillgrove
The Grayson Rams are based out of Gwinnett County, but their second home is apparently the Macon Coliseum.
For the third straight year the Grayson girls will be playing for a basketball state championship, after they knocked off No. 7 Hillgrove 68-56 in Saturday’s GHSA Class 6A semifinal game at Georgia State University.
Senior guard Coco Rudolph shone brightly on the big downtown Atlanta stage, pouring in a game-high 40 points to lead the way.
The Rams (22-10), the fourth seed out of the tough Region 4-6A, closed out the second quarter on a 9-0 run to take an eight-point halftime lead and never let the margin dip below six for the rest of the game.
Hillgrove, the No. 2 seed from Region 3, ends its season at 24-7.
Grayson head coach Tim Slater said his team’s familiarity with the high stakes of a “Final Four” game showed in its play.
“We talked today about coming out fast and understanding ‘Hey, we’ve been in this building before,’” Slater said. “Being here (in the semis) now for the third year in a row made a difference for our kids in their comfort level and their ability to come out and start fast and play fast. Being up eight at the half was pretty good, but being able to stretch that lead out to double digits and then be able to hold on late was huge.”
Slater added that while his team may not have a gaudy record or an elite ranking in various polls, his team hasn’t let any outside noise bother them or detract from their pursuit of another title.
“People may not want us here or think we deserve to be here, but we’re Grayson and we feel like we’ve earned this and deserve this,” Slater said emphatically. “Our kids believe that, our fans believe that, our administration believes that and I believe that with my whole heart.
“Guess what? This is back-to-back-to-back state title appearances, and so I couldn’t be more proud of our kids,” Slater added. “These girls have been through the process, working up from freshman to JV level and now here. They’ve earned this, and now we’re in Macon.”
Hillgrove head coach Susan Milam said Grayson’s defensive intensity made a big difference in the outcome.
“I think we had a little bit of nerves at the beginning of the game today,” Milam said. “I think we were struggling to get to the basket and attack the gaps in the zone. Grayson really spread (their defense) out and that kinda altered the way we wanted to play offense. But when you get to this point of the tournament, everybody is good. It’s a matter of who’s gonna play their best on that day, and Grayson just played better today than we did … they had players step up and make really big shots. We had to fight from behind for most of the game, but I’m still very proud of our girls.”
After an even first quarter that ended with the teams tied at 17 apiece, Hillgrove edged in front 24-23 midway through the second period. However, a 3-pointer from the right wing by Rudolph sparked a 9-0 closing run that built a 32-24 halftime lead.
The Lady Hawks cut the deficit to six points on four different occasions in the third quarter but could never mount enough of a charge to reclaim the lead. A long Rudolph 3-pointer from the top of the key as the quarter expired gave Grayson an 11-point advantage, 50-39.
A five-point burst by Hillgrove cut a 14-point lead down to just nine with a minute and a half left in the game, but a clutch trey from Tamera Rudolph on the very next possession extended the lead back to double digits with 51 seconds remaining.
Coco Rudolph was the only Rams player in double figures. For Hillgrove, Aeris Macon led the way with 17 points, while Tori Thompson scored 12 and Shelby McCall added 11.
Grayson — state champions in 2024 and runners-up last year — will face the winner of the Campbell-North Paulding semifinal next Saturday at 5:30 p.m. in the Class 6A championship game.
