Class 3A Basketball blog: No. 2 Johnson boys defeat No. 6 Beach; rematch in region tourney likely

Second-ranked Johnson’s 76-50 victory against No. 6 Beach (20-3, 11-1) on Friday avenged the Atomsmashers’ 64-57 loss to its Savannah rival on Jan. 6 and set up a playoff-like atmosphere for a likely third meeting in the Region 3-3A tournament.

The loss marked Beach’s third of the season after losing to Groves 53-51 on Dec. 16 and Sports Leadership (Fla.) 56-48 on Jan. 7. For Johnson (19-4, 10-2) the victory was the sixth consecutive after the Atomsmashers lost to Lithonia 53-47 on Jan. 14.

Malachi Robinson scored 25 points with 10 rebounds to lead the Atomsmashers. Josh Quarterman added 20 points with six rebounds, five assists and four steals. Antonio Baker scored 10 points with five rebounds, four steals and three assists. Cormari Jones scored nine points with four steals, three rebounds and three assists, and Favion Kirkwood scored five points with five rebounds for Johnson.

Beach was led by James Leach with 20 points, Shamarrie Hugie with 12, Chandler Reid with seven and Tyrese Bellamy with five.

Johnson will close out its regular season against Groves on the road Friday, and Beach will travel to Long County on Tuesday, then face a trip to Savannah Country Day on Friday before the region tournament.

On the girls side of the class, No. 10 Calvary Day’s Hannah Cail is the Cavaliers’ all-time scoring leader after a 75-54 victory against Long County on Friday.

“It was awesome to set the record at a school that has had so many great players,” Cail told Dennis Knight of the Savannah Morning News. “I couldn’t have done it without the help of my teammates and coaches. And it was nice having Katie (Covington) here. It’s the first time I’ve met her, but I’ve heard a lot about her; she held the record for so long.”

Cail finished with a season-high 34 points in the victory, passing 2009 graduate Covington’s record of 1,828 points. Covington was on hand to watch Cail break the record. She is averaging a team-leading 20 points with six rebounds, four assists and three steals per game.

Note: Results from next week’s region tournaments can be found here, with updated scores and schedules for the 3A boys and girls.

Class 3A Boys Top-10

1. Sandy Creek (17-6)

2. Johnson-Savannah (19-4)

3. Cedar Grove (15-6)

4. Monroe Area (20-3)

5. Cross Creek (14-10)

6. Beach (20-3)

7. Dougherty (12-10)

8. Monroe (17-6)

9. Wesleyan (17-6)

10. Hart County (13-10)