Storylines for boys, girls championship games
Storylines for Class 5A championships
The championship game that will be played on Thursday in Macon will have few surprises. All four teams are quite familiar with their opponent. The Kell and Eagle’s Landing boys met in the title game last year. The Maynard Jackson and Midtown girls have already played four times this season.
Here is a storyline for each team in the two title games.
Girls: No. 2 Maynard Jackson (28-1) vs. No. 3 Midtown (27-5), 5:30 p.m.
Jackson: The Jaguars will try to use their traps and pressure defense to cause turnovers and force the tempo of the game in their favor. They did it in the third-round against Union Grove and again in the semifinal against Cartersville. Once they get happy, coach Maurice Miles’ team is hard to slow down. Player to watch: Shakira Gresham. The athletic senior is a monster on the boards and a powerful inside force. She can be a mismatch – too big for a smaller defender to handle and too quick for a larger defense. Gresham has been terrific.
Midtown: The Knights can take solace in the fact they’ve played Jackson better than anyone else in the classification. Midtown came with three points on Feb. 9. But the two other games weren’t as close – eight points on Jan. 17 and 12 points in the Region 5 championship game. Player to watch: Briaiah Lewis is a skillful player and good scorer – she had 21 in the semifinal win over Dalton. She’s also a senior – one of two on the roster – and would like to leave the program with a state championship in hand.
Boys: No. 1 Kell (27-3) vs. No. 2 Eagle’s Landing (24-7), 7:30 p.m.
Kell: The Longhorns won the school’s first state championship a year ago and have been the top-ranked team all season. Coach Jermaine Sellers’ team has won 26 in a row since dropping three of their first four against a killer. Kell has been able to remain focused, despite playing in one of the weaker leagues in the classification. It’s been a while since the Longhorns have had any real competition. That won’t be a problem in the title game. Player to watch: C.J. Brown. The South Florida signee is the Region 6 Player of the Year for a reason. He can do a bit of everything and has the sort of skills that can change the pace of a game.
Eagle’s Landing: No team in Class 5A has been better over the last four years than Eagle’s Landing, which is making its fourth straight appearance in the championship game. The Eagles won it all in 2021 and lost in the final to Tri-Cities in 2022 and Kell in 2023. Since getting on a roll, coach Elliott Montgomery’s team has won 12 straight and swept through the Region 2 tournament. Player to watch: Clark Mastin. The point guard has the sort of experience that comes in handy in these situations. He understands when to push it and when to slow things down – which isn’t often. Mastin is explosive getting to the rim and has a knack for finding the open man.
Television: The games will be shown live on the NFHS Network. A subscription is required, but it’s worth it to hear Wiley Ballard call the game.
About the Author
Stan Awtrey has been covering sports for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution since 1977. He currently writes about high school sports, Georgia State University athletics and golf.
