Here’s a recap of Wednesday’s quarterfinal play in the boys and girls state basketball tournaments.
The AJC covered three quarterfinals:
Boys 7A: Pebblebrook 65, Milton 59
Boys 5A: Jonesboro 67, Loganville 61
Girls 5A: Forest Park 52, Loganville 40
See the remainder of Wednesday’s recaps below. State semifinals are set for March 4-5, with the championships March 9-12 in Macon.
6A
Boys:
Sequoyah 71, Kell 70
Kyle Keener made both free throws in a one-and-one with 8.9 seconds remaining to give host Sequoyah the win in a thriller. Preston Parker led the Chiefs with 28 points, Dylan Wolle scored 20 points and Keener finished with 14 points. For Kell, Peyton Marshall led with 24 points.
Girls:
Lovejoy 71, River Ridge 59
Bryanna Preston scored 26 points to go with seven assists and four steals for No. 2 Lovejoy as it defeated No. 1 River Ridge. La’Nya Foster scored 16 points and had seven rebounds for host Lovejoy, and Kayla Cleaveland scored 13 points for River Ridge.
Sequoyah 53, Bradwell Institute 44
Sequoyah held off Bradwell Institute at home, as the Lady Chiefs led 30-17 at halftime and weathered a comeback that brought the score as close as 41-37 in the fourth quarter. Elle Blatchford led Sequoyah with 26 points, and Parris Parham led Bradwell Institute with 21 points.
5A
Boys:
Calhoun 66, Woodland-Stockbridge 56
Calhoun outscored Woodland-Stockbridge 21-12 in the third quarter to take a 48-39 lead into the final frame. Dylan Faulkner led the Yellow Jackets with a game-high 23 points, and teammate Peyton Law finished with 18. Jaylan Harris (8), Emaree Winston (7), Brendan Gray (7) and Blaze Hammett (3) also sparked Calhoun’s quarterfinals victory.
4A
Boys:
McDonough 53, Druid Hills 48
No. 1-ranked McDonough is back in the semifinals for the second straight season after a road win over top-seeded and No. 8-ranked Druid Hills. Keenan Gray (15), Avante Nichols (13) and Amon McDowell (12) finished in double figures. Druid Hills was led by Keshawn Evans (14), Nick Majors (13) and David Sledge (10). McDonough led 39-37 at the end of the third quarter before pulling away late.
Girls:
Pickens 51, Jefferson 50
No. 2 seed Pickens trailed 47-35 with 6:54 left and sparked a 16-3 scoring run to stun top-seeded Jefferson and advance to the semifinals, where they will take on Marist. The Dragonettes trailed 25-21 at the half, and Jefferson outscored Pickens 20-12 in the third quarter. This is the second straight dramatic comeback by Pickens, which trailed Dougherty 38-24 in the fourth quarter before scoring the 48-44 victory in the second round.
3A
Boys:
Cross Creek 55, Groves 46
The defending champions are still in the hunt for a repeat after beating Groves. The Razorbacks led 20-14 at the half. With four minutes left in the third quarter, Groves trailed 25-20. With 1:39 left in the quarter, the game was tied at 26. Cross Creek responded and closed the third quarter on a 10-0 run to push the lead to 36-28 as it began to push the game out of reach. Cross Creek will play Beach in the semis for a chance at a repeat state championship after winning the program’s first last season.
Windsor Forest 47, Sumter County 41
Windsor Forest outlasted Sumter County after trailing 34-33 entering the fourth quarter. The Knights put the game away after a 14-7 effort in the final frame.
Thomson 79, Johnson-Savannah 66
Thomson advanced to its first semifinal appearance since 1992 after moving past Johnson at home.
2A
Boys:
Woodville-Tompkins 54, Model 51 (OT)
Model held a 39-27 lead with 3:05 left in the third quarter, but Woodville-Tompkins orchestrated a 20-8 scoring run that forced overtime tied at 47. Woodville-Tompkins built a 54-51 lead in overtime, and Model’s final shot missed at the buzzer. Lukas Platauna (22) and Zion Powers (12) led Woodville-Tompkins in scoring.
Girls:
Northeast-Macon 85, Laney 52
Northeast-Macon made another statement Wednesday night and will head into this weekend’s semifinals with a 35.7 average margin of victory through the first three rounds. The Raiders were tied at 15 after the first quarter and led 33-31 at the half before exploding for a 52-21 scoring advantage in the second half, including a 26-6 third-quarter swing.
A Private
Boys:
Heritage Newnan 52, North Cobb Christian 51
Heritage trailed 33-23 at the half and outscored North Cobb Christian 12-5 in the third quarter to cut the deficit to 38-35. The Hawks got their first lead since the opening quarter with 1:44 left (48-46), but North Cobb Christian tied it back up. Max Skidmore’s free throw with 9.6 left put the Hawks up 52-51, and 6-foot-5 senior Shaun Nichols sealed the victory with a block on North Cobb Christian’s final shot.
A Public
Boys:
Commerce 37, Pelham 34
Pelham outscored Commerce 15-5 in the second quarter and took a 23-17 lead into the half. Commerce cut the deficit to 28-23 at the end of the third quarter and then outscored the Hornets 14-6 in the final frame to secure the victory. Commerce opened the season 1-9 and has gone 13-5 since. The Tigers will take on top-seeded Hancock Central in the semifinals.
Social Circle 88, Calhoun County 77
No. 1-ranked Social Circle improved to 30-0 and led 80-65 late in the fourth quarter before closing out the victory. The Redskins were led KJ Reid (21), Cam Gaither (15), Amarion Russell (15), Tyrhell Branch (14) and Lamarius Jackson (10, 15 rebounds).
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