Boys: McEachern 63, Wheeler 56
When things got a little testy in the fourth quarter, No. 2 McEachern went to it’s Ace.
Senior Ace Bailey scored 32 points, but perhaps none was more important than the 3-pointer he rang home to start a 9-0 run and thwart Wheeler’s comeback attempt.
McEachern (26-5) had been in control most of the game and had built an eight point lead, only to have Wheeler score seven straight and cut the margin to 47-46. That’s when Bailey, playing with three fouls since late in the first half, changed the game with his long 3-pointer that hit nothing but net. It was one of six 3-pointers he had.
“That little run we took, we got energy,” Bailey said. “Coach called timeout and we came together as a team and just fought through it. We left all that attitude alone. It was just the next possession.”
Coach Tremayne Anchrum admitted the timeout that preceded the run helped calm the waters. He said there was plenty of apprehension since Wheeler eliminated his team a year ago under the same circumstances.
“We were nervous, but luckily we have the best player in the country who can carry us on his shoulders,” Anchrum said.
Bailey, a 6-foot-10 forward who has committed to Rutgers, also had 14 rebounds and five blocked shots. Nnadozie Onyirimba, a 6-4 senior who Anchrum refers to as the team’s “Dennis Rodman” had 11 points, including a big three-point player where he made the basket while falling to the floor.
No. 3-ranked Wheeler (27-5) got 16 points from Arkansas State signee Josh Hill and 12 points from Ricky McKenzie.
The game was tied 15-15 after the first quarter, but McEachern got six points from Baily in the second quarter and led 30-23 at halftime. Bailey had 15 points and nine rebounds in the first half, but picked up his third personal foul with 29.1 seconds left in the half.
It was the first meeting this season between the two state powers, even though both are Cobb County schools. Since the teams are not in the same region, they prefer to play non-local opponents in the non-conference arena. Bailey said it was a big deal to beat the Wildcats.
“They put us out last year, so it means a lot,” he said. “It’s a great coach they’ve got over there and a great team they’ve got, but it means a lot to me. I feel great to come back and beat them.”
Boys: Grayson 57, Milton 40
No. 1 Grayson has a lot of flashy players and provides plenty of highlight reel material, but it was defense that made the difference on Saturday in the 57-40 win over No. 8 Milton.
“I thought we played great defensively, outside of a couple of miscommunications on their ball screen action,” said Grayson coach Geoffrey Pierce. “But holding a team like that to 40 points, I’m not going to complain. We’ll just work on it in practice next week.”
The Rams (26-2) showed their offensive balance. Amir Taylor scored 13, Gicarri Harris scored 12 and Jake Wilkins and C.J. Hyland each scored 11.
“The whole team is just unselfish,” Pierce said. “We’ve just been preaching sharing the ball all year and it starts with Gicarri, who is our leading scorer but he’s very unselfish. It trickles down to the rest of the group. As long as we’re moving the ball we’re pretty tough to guard.”
Milton (20-11) was led by Dhvanjish Vaghela with 14, Daniel Oguiheymi with 12 and Josh Dixon with 10.
Grayson surged ahead in the second quarter and took a 32-21 lead at halftime. Milton had an early 7-0 run in the third quarter and cut the lead to six, but never got any closer. Grayson had a comfortable 8-10-point margin the rest of the night.
“Basketball is a game of runs, so any time somebody is able to make a run on you, if you can answer it with a run of your own, you’re going to win more games than you lose,” Pierce said. “I’ve got a veteran group and they don’t panic.”
The Rams advance to the final on Saturday in Macon, where they’ll play No. 2-ranked McEachern. Grayson beat McEachern 79-62 in the season opener on Nov. 11.
“They’ve made a list of goals in the locker room and at the top of the list was a state championship,” Pierce said. “I told them, you can’t win a state championship if you don’t play for one. So we’ve been pretty much taking it game-by-game and I’m so proud of them.”
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
Girls: North Paulding 55, Cherokee 52
North Paulding had six girls with eight or more points and beat Cherokee 55-52 to earn its first trip to the championship game.
“It’s a dream come true,” North Paulding coach Wes Willis said. “I remember when my oldest played here and they used to struggle and if they got close to getting in a game it was nice. Now look at where we are.”
Kaden McCorvey hit a pair of free throws with 14.4 seconds left to give the Wolfpack a three-point lead.
“I was very confident in her,” Willis said. “We always work on that.”
After a timeout, Cherokee worked for the final shot to tie the game but Toni Warren’s shot was unsuccessful.
“We always stress defense and getting stops,” Willis said. “You should be able to go anywhere at any point and get the stop when you need to. And that’s what they did.”
North Paulding (25-6) got 10 points from McCorvey, Morgan Landrum and Marina Sippola, nine from Ava Andrews and eight each from Jayda Jackson and Andrea Landrum.
Warren led Cherokee (24-7) with 25 points and Madison Moody added 15 for the Warriors.
Girls: Grayson 66, Lowndes 35
Unbeaten Grayson, the No. 1-ranked team in the state, dominated from the opening tip and rolled to a 66-25 win over No. 10 Lowndes. The Rams led 13-7 after one quarter and 29-10 at halftime to earn a trip to the championship game against North Paulding on Saturday at 5:30 p.m.
Grayson (31-0) got 25 points from Georgia Tech commit Danielle Carnegie, the Region 4 Player of the Year, and 16 points and 17 rebounds from Florida Atlantic commit Erin Rodgers.
But the difference for Grayson came on the defensive end. The Rams were too quick, too physical and too tuned-in for Lowndes (22-5).
“People see we have all these superstars and think all they want is to score,” Grayson coach Tim Slater said. “If I told you how many times they get mad and cuss and fuss at each other in practice about defense. They want to be on the scout team and they want to play defense because they realize that’s how we can win games. I’m really proud of them.”
Slater said his team has enjoyed playing all season as the No. 1-ranked team in the state.
“It’s a new experience, but honestly I think it has helped us,” he said. “It’s a mindset for us to continuously know that if we have a letdown game or we’re not focused and you lose a game, you’re going to lose the chance to play in a national tournament. To hold that carrot out there, I think it has really helped the focus.”
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