The Walton boys came into the third round of the state playoffs as the most Cinderella team around. The Raider emerged from tough Region 5 as the No. 4 seed and stunned Region 6 champion Lambert on the opening round and Region 7 runner-up Peachtree Ridge in the second round.
But Walton’s good fortune ran out on Wednesday when the No. 3-ranked Grayson Rams threw up a serious defensive roadblock and rolled to a 46-29 win in their Class 7A Elite Eight matchup at Archer High School.
The game had to be moved from Grayson to Archer after the school’s gym was flooded when a soccer ball hit a sprinkler head in the ceiling tile during a PE class.
But defense travels – even when it’s officially a home game – and Grayson used its quickness, its significant height advantage and its determination to shut down Walton. The Raiders were unable to score a point in the first quarter and didn’t scratch until 6:27 left in the opening half, by which time Grayson had put up the first 14 points of the game.
“I thought it was a very good defensive effort,” Grayson coach Geoffrey Pierce said. “They did a good job on the boards and did a good job following the game plan. There are some things we need to clean up and practice the next couple of days, but I was more than pleased with the effort on defense.”
Grayson led 25-7 at halftime, 39-17 after three quarters and Pierce emptied the bench with 4:03 left in the game and the Rams up 44-18.
“They’ve done a good job working hard all year and, even though they’re young, we’ve never had to question how hard they’re going to work and their desire to win,” Pierce said.
The Region 8 champion Rams (24-5) were led by C.J. Hyland, a junior point guard, who scored 11 points and guarded Walton’s Luke Flynn, limiting him to six points.
“I though C.J. was phenomenal,” Pierce said. “He played phenomenal defense on Flynn. I thought he made it real tough for him tonight. That’s where it starts. C.J. is one of the best defenders I’ve ever coached.”
Gicarri Harris, a 6-foot-4 junior, scored 13 points and 6-8 sophomore Amir Taylor scored 10. Chad Moodie, a highly athletic 6-8 senior who was the Region 8 defensive player of the year, changed countless shots with his leaping ability and high motor. Grayson has won 11 straight.
Walton (19-12) had no players in double figures. Flynn, Caesar Burrows and Nathan Watson each scored six. Walton’s previous low-point total was 42 in a win against Pope in a holiday tournament.
Grayson advances to play the winner of the McEachern-Wheeler game on Saturday at 8 p.m. at the Georgia State Convocation Center.
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