Three Class 3A programs have boys and girls teams ranked in the top 10 – Greater Atlanta Christian, Cross Creek and Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe.
Greater Atlanta Christian’s boys are ranked at No. 6 and the girls No. 4 heading into each team’s MLK events Monday. The boys are competing in the Dream Challenge at Campbell on Monday and will face a challenge against Class A Private No. 7 Mount Vernon. The girls will take on Class 7A No. 7 Woodstock at Holy Innocents’ MLK event.
The boys will need to find a way to slow Mount Vernon’s 6-foot-9 senior forward Dennis Scott III, who is averaging 14 points, 10.2 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game. Keith Williams adds 13 points per game with 9.3 rebounds; Syncere Harris is scoring 12 points per game with 3.7 assists, and Kenneth Southall Jr. is scoring 11 points with four rebounds per game.
GAC’s boys (9-3 overall and 3-2 in Region 5 play) are outscoring opponents 713-544. Since losing to No. 4 Salem 50-45 Jan. 4, the Spartans have beaten Cedar Grove 63-43 and Westminster 58-43, both important region victories.
The GAC girls will face a Woodstock program that has three players averaging in double-figures -- senior Bridget Utberg (21 points), junior Karson Martin (14.4), and junior Casey Miller (14).
GAC senior Kaleigh Addie leads with 21 points per game, and Jaci Bolden is averaging 16.
Defending champions: Cross Creek has defending champions on the boys and girls side of the class – the first titles for each team. The boys are ranked No. 5 and the girls are ranked No. 2 this season. The boys are 12-4 and 3-0 in Region 4 heading into Tuesday’s game against Richmond Academy (7-8). The girls team is 12-1 and 3-0 in Region 4, its only loss coming to Valdosta (43-32) on Dec. 21.
Winning ways: The boys and girls teams from Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe have lost one game this season. That came after the No. 9-ranked boys (15-1, 8-1) lost to No. 7 LaFayette 82-69 in a Region 6 game Jan. 11. The boys team is led by juniors JaMichael Davis (21 points per game) and Brent Bowman (19 points per game).
The No. 3-ranked girls (17-0, 9-0) are unbeaten and are coming off a 56-50 victory against No. 10 Murray County. Freshamn Christen Collins leads the team with 19 points per game. Junior Angel Simmons averages 18 points, and junior Christina add 14.2. The team will travel to Ringgold for a region game Friday.
Class 3A boys top-10
1. Sandy Creek
4. Salem
5. Cross Creek
7. LaFayette
8. Groves
10. Thomson
Class 3A girls top-10
2. Cross Creek
5. East Jackson
8. Redan
9. Burke County
10. Murray County
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