Class 4A Blog: A look at this year’s finalists

14-2 Region 2-AAAA

Carver-Columbus is looking to win its second state title in the past three seasons after claiming the program’s historic first in 2019. The Tigers earned their fifth-straight region title prior to the playoffs and are coming off a dramatic 74-70 semifinal victory over Cedar Shoals. The Tigers jumped out to a 42-31 lead at the half, but Cedar Shoals sparked a 14-5 run to open the third quarter and closed out the frame with a 24-12 edge to take a 55-54 lead into the fourth quarter. Carver reclaimed the lead (69-68) with 1:47 left before holding off the Jaguars. Carver-Columbus extended its winning streak to 14 games with the victory. The quarterfinals was another thriller and Carver-Columbus defeated Jefferson 61-60. No. 7 ranked Carver-Columbus built a 42-38 halftime lead and held off the No. 1 ranked Dragons. Carver-Columbus is led by senior and Clemson signee Kionna Gaines. The four-star prospect is rated by ESPN as the No. 19 overall guard in the country. She has averaged 20.3 points per game this season, while also contributing seven rebounds per game. Gaines has played a crucial role in Carver-Columbus’ recent success and was contributing as a sophomore back when the Tigers earned the state crown two seasons ago—giving her plenty of experience in playing on the big stage. Carver-Columbus’ only two losses this season came outside of the classification (66-65 Hughes, 57-54 Lovejoy) and they are a perfect 12-0 inside the classification this season.

Cairo Syrupmakers

18-1 Region 1-AAAA

Cairo’s only loss this season came on the road to Bainbridge and the Syrupmakers split their regular season series with the Bearcats by previously scoring the victory. In the playoffs, Cairo has played four highly-competitive rounds of close contests. The semifinals was extremely close until Cairo emerged with a 55-52 win over Troup. Foul trouble plagued Troup early and ultimately gave Cairo a pathway to rally back for a dramatic semifinal victory. The Tigers committed six fouls within the first four minutes of the game and this forced star players Aniya Palmer and Alexia Murphy to go to the bench. Cairo was able to take a 16-8 lead heading into the second quarter. Troup surmounted a massive 21-2 run with their stars back on the court and went into the half with a 33-23 lead. Palmer led Troup with 14 points in the first half. The second half comeback was facilitated by Troup’s costly fouls and Cairo roared back to take a 43-41 lead into the final frame. No. 9 ranked Cairo is now just one victory away from taking home its first state title since 1982. The quarterfinals were another down-to-the-wire thriller and Cairo held off Pickens 51-49 after going into the half with a narrow 29-27 lead. Ambria Vicks is Cairo’s top scoring threat and she is averaging 19.3 ppg. Chambria Vicks (10.6) and Leah Perry (11.1) are also averaging double-digit scoring. Vicks is an aggressive scorer that took 12 trips to the foul line in the quarterfinals win over Pickens.

Class 4A BOYS

Fayette County Tigers

18-11 Region 5-AAAA

Fayette County opened the season with a gauntlet of games against the state’s toughest programs and has continued to progress as the year played out. Fayette County has won nine-straight games heading into the finals and the Tigers have outscored their four playoff opponents by an average of 22 points per game. Despite this wide margin, Fayette County had to rally past Westover to score its 59-50 semifinal victory. Fayette County opened up a 10-6 lead in the first quarter, but Westover responded with a 7-1 run to take a 16-11 lead at the end of the frame. Fayette County sparked an 11-6 run to open the second quarter to tie the game at 22-22 and Westover eventually went into the half with a 27-24 lead. Fayette County’s top scorer is 6-foot-7 junior Kaleb Banks. In the first round, Banks hit 16-of-23 shots and led the way with a game-high 36 point. Banks went 12-of-13 from the field in the second round to finish with 32 points and he has finished with 17 points and 16 points in the past two victories. Banks will receive most of the defensive attention, but Fayette County seniors Terry Brown and Cardell Bailey are capable scorers. Additionally, sophomore RJ Kennedy has come up big throughout this season. Kennedy scored a playoff-high 13 points in the semifinals and Bailey hit two three-pointers and netted 15 points in the semifinals. As a team, Fayette County was able to make 8-of-15 three-point attempts in the semifinals.

Baldwin Braves

16-0 Region 4-AAAA

Baldwin is one victory away from closing out a perfect season and capturing its first state title since 1981. The Braves have had a difficult path in this year’s playoffs that has included games against Bainbridge, Hardaway, Miller Grove and McDonough. Baldwin’s success stems from the team’s depth, balanced scoring and highly-productive underclassmen. In the Braves’ 46-42 semifinal win over McDonough, Baldwin outscored the visiting Warhawks 31-15 in the second half. McDonough built a 10-7 lead in the first quarter and went into the half with a 27-15 lead. Baldwin was able to chip the deficit to 33-30 by the end of the third frame and then closed out McDonough in the final frame. Rudolph Satcher paced the Braves with a game-high 16 points and teammate Shatavious Hogan chipped in with 10 points. The Braves also got contributions from William Freeman (9) and Jacobi Nixon (7). Nixon is a 6-foot-5 playmaker that is shooting an efficient 56 percent from the field this season. Hogan is a sophomore that is the team’s top rebounder and is averaging roughly eight points per game this season. Baldwin scored a huge 58-52 win over Miller Grove in the quarterfinals. Baldwin entered the matchup ranked No. 1 and Miller Grove came in as the No. 3 team in the classification. The Braves made five free-throws in the final 19 seconds to clinch the victory. Freeman scored 16 points, Satcher once again led with his team-high 19 points and Lataveon Roach finished with 10 points.