The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL
THIS WEEK’S TOP GAMES
Here are some of the best high school basketball games that will be played this week in each classification. (Note: records and statistics do not include Jan. 18-19 games.)
CLASS AAAAAAA
BOYS
■ No. 2 Meadowcreek vs. No. 4 Greenforest Christian (Class A), 7 p.m. Monday: Meadowcreek had won only five games in the state tournament until last season, when the Mustangs won five consecutive that included a shocking upset of nationally ranked Norcross for the title. The Cinderella story is now finished. Meadowcreek still has a trio of senior guards that can match any in the state, including Jalen Benjamin (averaging 18 points, four assists; signed with UAB), shooting guard Jamir Chaplin (14 points, six rebounds; signed with South Florida) and Damian Dunn (13 points, seven rebounds; signed with Temple). In this game, the Mustangs take on traditional Class A power Greenforest at Grady High in a 12-game Martin Luther King Jr. Day event called The Dream Challenge.
GIRLS
■ No. 4 North Cobb at Hillgrove, 7 p.m. Friday: Region 3 is one of the few in the highest class in which the second-place team seriously has challenged the leader. Hillgrove did that earlier this month when the Hawks lost to North Cobb 46-44 on the road. This is the rematch, and it likely will decide the region’s No. 1 seed.
CLASS AAAAAA
BOYS
■ Tri-Cities at Alexander, 7:30 p.m. Friday: Alexander (15-7, 8-5) was in the thick of the race for the top spot in a loaded Region 5 until a three-game losing streak dropped the Cougars into fourth place and out of the rankings. Sixth-ranked TriCities (14-5, 10-1), in first place and a game ahead of Douglas County in the region, suffered its first region loss against twotime defending state champion Hughes on Jan. 11 but bounced back with victories against Northgate and South Paulding.
GIRLS
■ Lanier at Dacula, 6 p.m. Friday: Seventh-ranked Lanier’s 51-42 victory against Dacula (15-5, 3-2) on Jan. 8 was part of a 4-0 start to region play that propelled the Longhorns (16-3, 4-4) into first place in Region 8. Senior point guard Mekala Fuller scored 18 points in the victory and is averaging 21 points during region play. Dacula fell into third place in the region with a 66-61 loss to WinderBarrow on Tuesday.
CLASS AAAAA
BOYS
■ No. 5 Lithonia at Columbia, 7 p.m. Tuesday: Lithonia is coming off a big victory last week against No. 3 Southwest DeKalb, which began the weekend tied for first place. Lithonia is led by guard Eric Gaines, who averages 16.9 points and leads DeKalb County with 5.5 assists. Columbia has some outstanding players, including Liron Thomas (20.4 points, No. 4 in DeKalb).
GIRLS
■ No. 2 Villa Rica at Cass, 5:30 p.m. Friday: The two Region 7 foes meet for the second time in the past week. Villa Rica virtually can nail down the top seed in the coming region tournament with a victory. Villa Rica is led by threetime all-state choice Deasia Merrill, the school’s alltime leading scorer and a Kentucky signee. Seniors Sharia Wade and Peyton Stoddard lead a solid group of shooters for Cass.
CLASS AAAA
BOYS
■ No. 10 Druid Hills at No. 4 Henry County, 7:30 p.m. Friday: Henry County’s experience has generated one of the most productive and consistent seasons in program history. The group avenged its first loss of the year by scoring a 57-50 victory against No. 7 Woodward Academy earlier this month. The victory improved its overall record to 19-1 and eclipsed a victory total (18-11-1) from last year with five regularseason games remaining. The Warhawks reside in a talent-packed Region 4-AAAA with Druid Hills, a team that has challenged them in each of their two most recent meetings. GIRLS
■ No. 1 Carver-Columbus at No. 6 Westover, 6 p.m. Tuesday: Top-ranked Carver-Columbus features the highest scoring offense in the classification and is led by four-star junior forward Olivia Cochran. Standing 6-foot-3, Cochran is a strong rebounder who also can score at an allstate pace. Her 35 points and 16 rebounds against Orangeburg (S.C.) in the Crescom Beach Classic during the holidays is one of many performances that has strengthened her case for Georgia’s Player of the Year this season.
CLASS AAA
BOYS
■ Johnson-Savannah at Southeast Bulloch, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday: No. 7 Johnson-Savannah has been flawless since losing two straight in the Tournament of Champions at Wheeler during the holiday break. A six-game winning streak has been fueled by sophomore guard Emondre Bowles’ 15.3 points per game. Southeast Bulloch needs to right the ship following four consecutive losses since Jan. 8. Ryan Swanson, a 5-7 sophomore point guard, averages 14 points, four rebounds and three assists. GIRLS
■ Beach at Islands, 6 p.m. Tuesday: No. 4 Beach is 17-4 and 10-1, heading into its Region 3 game against Islands. The Bulldogs have won three consecutive games – Southeast Bulloch (66-13), Groves (75-25) and Windsor Forest (9721) – since losing 55-42 to No. 3 Johnson-Savannah on Jan. 8. Madison Evans, a 5-7 junior guard, averages 14 points, three rebounds and 3.4 assists. Islands’ leading scorer is Diamond Garvin, 6-foot senior center who is averaging 12.3 points and 12.3 rebounds.
CLASS AA
BOYS
■ No. 2 Therrell vs. Class A-Public’s No. 3 Eagle’s Landing, 12:15 p.m. Monday: The secondranked Panthers will play the Chargers in the MLK Holiday Basketball Classic at Douglas County. The Panthers are no strangers to going outside of Class AA to find tough competition, with all five of their losses coming narrowly to ranked teams from other classes. Monday’s game will be just another in a long line of tests for the Panthers, who last year emerged as one of AA’s best teams with a sophomore-laden lineup that reached the quarterfinals.
GIRLS
■ No. 1 Dodge County at No. 8 Washington County, 6 p.m. Tuesday: The topranked Lady Indians beat the eighth-ranked Lady Golden Hawks 73-64 at home Dec. 18. Now it’s the Lady Golden Hawks’ turn to host and seek revenge. Dodge County’s only blemish heading into the weekend was a 54-33 loss to Wayne County on Dec. 14. Since then, they’d won 10 straight. The Lady Golden Hawks, which won AAA in 2011 for their last title, are led by sophomore Miracle Parker (18.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.7 steals).
CLASS A
BOYS
■ Chattahoochee County at No. 1 (Public) Calhoun County, 7 p.m., Tuesday: Calhoun County is 18-0 for the first time in school history. The Cougars’ closest game this season was a 65-64 victory at Chattahoochee County (144, 8-2), almost two months ago, on Nov. 30. Calhoun County looks poised to make another deep run into the state playoffs.
GIRLS
■ No. 2 (Public) Greenville at No. 1 (Public) Marion County, 5:40 p.m. Tuesday: Marion County (17-0, 9-0 in Region 4) is having its best season after advancing to the state-title game last season, where it was were blown out by Greenville 73-52. The Eagles exacted a bit of revenge this season with a 71-70 victory on Dec. 11 at Greenville (18-1, 9-1). Todd Holcomb (Class AAAAAAA), Chip Saye (AAAAAA), Stan Awtrey (AAAAA), Craig Sager (AAAA), Seth Ellerbee (AAA), Adam Krohn (AA) and S. Thomas Coleman (A) contributed to this article.