When the high school basketball playoffs start Tuesday, the full impact of the most recent realignment will be most visible in the new Class 3A-A Private classification. That’s where four of last year’s girls champions and two of last year’s boys champions will find themselves competing against each other for one trophy.
By packing all the state’s smaller private schools — those in the three smallest classifications — in one division the GHSA has created a field that’s absolutely stacked.
Girls teams in the field who won titles last year are Hebron Christian (3A), Mount Paran Christian (2A), St. Francis (Class A DI) and Greenforest Christian (Class A D2), with Wesleyan a runner-up in 3A and Galloway a runner-up in Class A DI).
Boys teams in the field that won in 2024 are Greenforest (Class A D2) and Mount Vernon Christian (Class A D1), while Holy Innocents’ (4A), Galloway (Class A DI) and Paideia (Class A D2) finished second.
The private schools played alongside public schools during the regular season and in the region playoffs, but state tournament seedings are not based on region tournament results, as they are from Class 6A to A. For the first time, the GSHA used a mathematical formula to seed the teams for the state playoffs. The Hebron Christian girls (26-1) and North Cobb Christian boys (24-3) are the No. 1 seeds. Hebron Christian received a first-round bye, and North Cobb Christian opens against the Weber School.
“We’ll play whoever,” said Hebron Christian coach Jan Azar, whose team is ranked No. 1 by the AJC. “I’ve been in so many different regions, so many different classifications, always at the same-size private schools. But the way we’ve been moved around, I just said, we’re going to play where they put us. It’s not my job to figure out the public-private thing. It’s my job to coach the 12-15 kids that I have in my care, and whoever they put us up against is all I can control.”
Hebron could face No. 4-seed Mount Paran (24-3), last year’s Class AA champion, in the third round. The Eagles open against Mount Bethel Christian.
“We’re excited about it,” Mount Paran coach Stephanie Dunn said. “We like competition. You can tell from our schedule. We like it to be hard. We’ve been there before and the teams are different, but you understand what it’s going to take. We’re going to do our best, but we understand that it’s going to be a challenge.”
The St. Francis girls (26-2) have won two consecutive state championships; the No. 2-seeded Knights have won nine straight and earned a first-round bye. St. Francis defeated Mount Paran Christian during the regular season in their only meeting.
The Holy Innocents’ boys, who lost to North Oconee for the Class 4A title last year, has been ranked No. 1 by The AJC most of the year. The Bears feature North Carolina commit Caleb Wilson, the top prospect in Georgia, are seeded No. 3 and play Aquinas in the opener.
“It’s a little different,” Holy Innocents’ boys coach Mario Mays said. “We’ve got to go back to the same focus of just understanding whoever we pay, we want to win and we want to win together as a team. So, in our heads, I guess it doesn’t really change our mission. The mission is still to grow together as a group and put ourselves in a situation to try to win a championship.”
The Christian Heritage boys (24-1) earned the No. 2 seed and will open against W.D. Mohammed. The Lions enter the playoffs on a 17-game win streak.
“It’s going to be a great, fun state tournament,” Azar said. “Basketball in Georgia is just top notch.”
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
