Westlake staying close

Wheeler is up 54-46 with 5:02 left to play. At the start of the fourth, Javoris Bryant got a steal and took it in for the layup to put Westlake down 50-40. Westlake got within 10 on a Bryant jumper, but Wheeler responded, before the Lions latest spurt. It appears that the two teams are treading water, but Westlake is trying to inch their way back in it.

Westlake not dead yet

The Lions went on a 10-5 run to end the third quarter, as Wheeler finally missed some makeable shots in transition. The Wildcats also may have prematurely gone for the knockout punch, as they took some questionable 3-pointers. Can Westlake make a comeback? If they do comeback, they will probably have to get some help from the Wildcats, i.e. turnovers and forced shots.

Wildcats extending lead

Wheeler is playing its game and Phil Taylor is playing his game. Taylor fed Cochran for an easy open-court lay in and later buried another 3-pointer. Cochran also added another 3 and Wheeler leads 45-28 at the 2:39 mark of the third.

Westlake on the ropes

Phil Taylor got a steal and converted a circus layup plus the and-1 to put Wheeler up 35-21. Karl Cochran later scored to put the Wildcats up 37-21. The Wildcats now lead 37-24 with 5:31 left in the third. This is dangerous territory for Westlake. This one maybe slipping away from them.

Wheeler up 11 at the break

The Wildcats expanded their double-digit lead by a point and leads Westlake 32-21 at halftime. Stewart leads Wheeler with 10 points. Chad Johnson is the lead man for Westlake with six, as two of the Lions’ star players, Marcus Thornton and Javoris Bryant, have two points apiece. Wheeler appears to be in love with game’s pace, getting out in transition for easy baskets, getting easy put-backs, and getting open 3-pointers as well.

Double-digit Wheeler lead

An Ari Stewart 3-pointer has pushed Wheeler’s lead to 30-20. Westlake has mangaged to get Richard Howell to pick up his second foul, forcing him to leave, but with 1:38 remaining in the half, it likely is not that big of a deal.

Westlake still wants to run

The Lions are still trying to run and are down 24-16 with 5:12 remaining in the half. Phil Taylor has nailed another 3-pointer and the Wildcats are active defensively and on the boards.

Westlake makes it a game

Westlake has turned up the defensive pressure and finds themselves down by 17-16 at the end of the first quarter. They are still playing at Wheeler’s speed however, so I wonder how long they can keep this up. I have Westlake’s Chad Johnson and Jordan Brown both with four points.

Wildcats still running

Ari Stewart buried a trey, as Wheeler’s hot shooting continues. It looks obvious that Westlake will not be able with the Wildcats, so caution might be their best strategy. Wheeler leads 17-8 with 2:54 left in the first quarter.

Early Wheeler spurt

Richard Howell opened the game with a 3-pointer and Phil Taylor buried back-to-back 3-pointers after Westlake took a 4-3 lead. Wheeler leads 9-4, as Westlake called a timeout at the 5:21 mark.

Wheeler Westlake pregame

The Wheeler vs. Westlake matchup is about three minutes away from starting. Wheeler has had an extremely brutal schedule this year and should not be awed by any facet Westlake brings to the table. The Lions on the other hand is not quite the team analysts envision at the beginning of the season, as they have lost Jelan Kendrick. Nevertheless, they are a proud program and probably want to prove that against Wheeler tonight.

Marietta Beach final

The Lady Blue Devils get the win 58-40 and move on to face Redan tomorrow in the Class 5A Championship Game. Telia McCall led Marietta with 30 points and Monique Willis paced Beach with 14 Marietta should not be able to turnover or fluster Redan like they did Beach. Lady Raider point guard Alisha Andrews is very crafty and makes great decisions with the ball. The Lady Blue Devils may be able to wear her down or get her in foul trouble. Andrews had four fouls against Parkview today and is very aggressively defense. McCall should also expect a tougher challenge, as Redan front court players Nia Evans, Aneesah Daniels and Delia Brunson are all athletic and active.

The nail in Beach's coffin?

After hitting her first free throw, McCall missed the back end. Sabrina McCants got rebound and converted an and-1 with 3:40 left to play. Marietta is up 50-35.

Marietta hanging on

Marietta leads 46-35 with 4:03 left. A Willis jumper cut the lead to under 10 at 44-35. Willis has an air of confidence about her game. Of course when Marietta needs a basket, it is to McCall they go. She delivered to put the lead back into double digits.

Beach comeback?

McCall checked back in less than a minute into the last quarter. I guess Marietta head coach Ken Sprague Jr. wanted her to keeps some sharpness about her or he was concerned about a Bulldog comeback. Don’t look now, but Beach has the lead down to 12 (44-32) with 6:28 left. Monique Willis has played some determination.

Marietta maintains lead to start fourth

Marietta leads Beach 44-28 going into the fourth. Beach’s press works at times, but Marietta does have good ball handlers. When the Lady Blue Devils break the press it is a wrap. McCall left in the final minute of the third. I have her down for 20 points. Since the championship game is tomorrow, I wonder if she will make an appearance in the fourth.

The rout is on

It is officially a rout, as White has hit another 3-pointer for Marietta and Brittney Echols converted a layup off of a steal. Marietta leads 36-16 with 4:41 left in the quarter.

Looks like more of the same for Marietta

The Lady Blue Devils continue to play in your face defense and get the ball to McCall. Down 31-14 with 6:49 left in the third, Beach head coach Ronald Booker called a 30-second timeout. I guess his team forgot his halftime speech.

Marietta maintains lead at the half

Marietta leads Beach 29-14 at halftime. For awhile it seemed both teams were settling into a offensive rhythm, but the last minutes of the first half was plagued by numerous personal fouls. Beach can get Marietta into foul trouble, but that won’t matter if they don’t score any better than what they are doing. Paige Johnson leads beach with five points, while McCall leads Marietta with 15.

Marietta Beach update

McCall showed off her range by connecting on a 3-pointer from the left wing. Boy is she’s hard to guard. Marietta leads 20-8 with 4:29 remaining.

Marietta Beach update

Marietta leads 15-8 with 6:02 left in the second period. Brittany White got a steal and layup for the Lady Blue Devils, as Marietta is showing some defensive pressure of its own.

Marietta Beach update

Marietta leads 11-8 at the end of one. The Bulldogs’ Paige Johnson got a steal and converted an and-1, but Khalilah Watson later missed two free throws that would have brought Beach even closer.

Marietta Beach update

If the Lady Blue Devils get hot from downtown, this could be a short night. Courtney Sprague has hit a 3-pointer for Marietta. Marietta leads 11-2 at the 1:41 mark.

Marietta Beach update

Beach is employing a full court trap and that might be the best strategy, attack Marietta before they attack them. Marietta leads 8-2 with 3:32 left in the first.

Marietta Beach update

McCall and the Lady Blue Devils are now finding their groove. McCall has scored the last six points and Marietta leads 8-0 with 4:56 remaining.

Marietta Beach update

Marietta leads 2-0 at the 5:56 mark and Beach is competing. McCall missed her first shot under the goal and was tied up on a drive attempt seconds later.

Marietta Beach Update

Marietta and Beach is ready to tipoff. An interesting matchup to watch in this game is how does the girls from Beach deal with the Lady Blue Devils’ Telia McCall. McCall stands at 6-2, but has the skills an quickness to play the wing.

Marietta Beach update

The Marietta vs. Beach game is about two minutes away from starting, but first a quick note from the Milton vs. Newnan game. Julian Royal was credited with 18 points and eight blocks. He is the truth. I wonder what he’ll have in store for the title game.

Milton Newnan final

Milton gets the win 64-53 and it should be an interesting Class 5A Championship game against the winner of their Region 6 rival Wheeler and Westlake. Shannon Scott paced the Eagles with 19 points. The Marietta and Beach girls are now on the court warming up.

Milton Newnan update

A Powell 3-pointer cut Milton’s lead to 62-51, but it shouldn’t help unless Milton has an unbelievable meltdown at the foul line with 27 seconds remaining.

Milton, Newnan update

The story is youth, youth and more youth as Milton is up 60-47 with 1:21 left in the game. Royal added a slam and a layup and Evan Nolte, former Milton star Connor’s younger brother has added a basket. Bonner won’t go away for the Cougars, however, as he drained a 3.

Eagles extending lead

Milton is up 54-42 and Newnan’s chances don’t look good. Powell has appeared content in not forcing the issue, but if not now, then never, as he has 2:49 left in his high school career.

Milton Newnan updat

The Eagle sophomores are taking over as Royal and Scott have scored the last two buckets for Milton to give the Eagles a 52-42 lead, as Newnan burned a timeout with 4:23 remaining. Scott does look a little gimpy after scoring last bucket, though he remains in the game.

Milton, Newnan update

Milton is trying to pull away leading 48-42 with 5:25 left in the game. The Eagles had and eight-point lead as Parker drained a 3-pointer to put Milton up 44-38 less than a minute into the quarter and Evan Nolte made it an eight point lead off of an open-court layup.

Down to one point...

Milton leads 39-38 at the end of the third quarter. Powell delivered an and-1 off of a fast break with two seconds left in the quarter. Guard Alan Bonner also played well for the Cougars in the third, hitting jumpers and driving the lane. Royal got about a one-minute rest for Milton before returning with 1:32 left in the quarter. Newnan has not looked particularly good, but must be happy only being down one.

Milton Newnan update

Royal picks up his third foul with 3:58 left in the third. Milton leads 35-29. He stays in the game.

Newnan in foul trouble ...

Milton leads 31-26 with 5:30 remaining in the quarter. Newnan has foul trouble of their own as Powell picked up his third in the opening minute of the third quarter. He seems to be bother by Milton’s height offensively and defensively. By the way, Parker of Milton looks remarkably similar to Dominique Wilkins and even has his hairstyle, despite wearing Jordan’s 23

Milton Newnan update

Milton leads Newnan 27-21 at halftime. Shannon Scott has paced Milton with 11 points and Dai-Jon Parker has made some spectacular plays in the half for the Eagles. Royal eventually did spend the last minute on the bench. If Newnan wants to keep it close, they must continue to attack him. The Cougars star point guard Russell Powell hasn't been much of a factor tallying only three points.

Milton Newnan update

Milton is up 26-19 with 1:45 remaining in the first half, but Royals has two fouls. He remains on the court however.

WHAT A FINISH!

Alisha Andrews coolly hits two free throws to give Redan a four-point lead ... Katie Carroll hits both of her free throws after drawing a foul to cut it back to two, and after a Parkview timeout with 10 seconds remaining, Aneesah Daniels goes to the line for Redan in a 1-and-1 situation. 

She hits both, and Redan hangs on to win even after a 3-point shot from Megan Mitchell. The final is 63-62 in favor of the Raiders.

Redan returns to the championship game to try and do what they couldn't do last season, win a state title.

WHAT AN INCREDIBLE LAST MINUTE!

Lauren Coleman has been so big for Parkview all game long ... she just hit a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to two points with 16 seconds left in the game. Parkview needs a steal ...

Raiders steal lead!

Kierra Page banks in a 3-pointer for Redan to pull within one point, 54-53. Then, Alisha Andrews steals the ball and hits the layup to give Redan the one point lead, 55-54, with 1:40 to go in the game. Andrews has been so tough the entire game, and is still using her quickness as the game clock gets down to the end.

Redan is undefeated on the season, and doesn't want to lose now ...

Redan coming back

3:20 to go in the game, and Redan is within three points. The Lady Raiders are on a 4-0 run.

Back and forth we go ...

The teams are starting to ramp up the intensity, and Redan is within six, 52-46. Parkview will have to hit their free throws down the stretch if they want to hold on to win. Redan's Nia Evans is back in the game with 4:21 to go. 

Panthers extending the lead

It's up to nine points for Parkview, 44-35, and Redan continues to commit a lot of fouls and turn the ball over a lot. Nia Evans, Redan's leading scorer, just picked up her fourth foul ... not looking good right now for the Lady Raiders.

Lauren Coleman TAKING OVER

She's scored eight straight on three possessions in a row ... two 3's and an all-alone layup to put Parkview up 39-34 ... 

Parkview's crowd is really starting to get into it.

ALL Parkview so far in the second half ...

The Lady Panthers have stormed out in the second half of this game ... Redan is back on their heels. It's 31-29 Parkview, which took its first lead of the game after back-to-back layups. Maggie Smith just grabbed an offensive rebound and converted one free throw after being fouled ...

Halftime...

Two desperation 3's at the end of the half leaves the score at 27-24 in favor of Redan. A lot of people thought the Lady Raiders were going to run right past Parkview, but the Panthers are beginning to grab more rebounds and have shown the ability to play up-tempo when the opportunity arises.

Andrews with a trey to put Redan up by six points

Alisha Andrews just shook her defender at the top of the key with a cross-over and drive fake, then drilled a 3-pointer. Impressive.

Pace picking up ... BIGTIME

These two teams have come alive from beyond the arc ... already both teams have hit two 3-pointers in the second half, and the score is 19-16 in favor of Redan.

End of 1st - Parkview comes back

Parkview gets it going with a flurry of points right at the end of the first quarter. Parkview's offense is coming in the form of layups and post play. Expect them to continue looking inside.

Second chances for Redan ...

The Raiders are dominating on the offensive rebound front, getting second and third chances off missed shots. Parkview is going to have to grab some 50-50 balls if they want to get back in it. Score is 11-5 in favor of Redan.

Redan vs. Parkview - early thoughts

Tad Arapoglou and Sam Radin are calling the action for the first game today. It's a low-scoring affair so far, with a few missed layups on both sides. Redan is VERY athletic and is looking to up the pace, and Parkview is surprisingly playing at Redan's speed. As I'm typing this, Parkview gets its first points of the game - 7-3 Redan.

BACK IN GWINNETT

It will start with Redan and Parkview girls at 4, followed by Newnan and Milton boys, then Beach and Marietta girls and Westlake and Wheeler boys ... 5A Hoops!

MILLER IS GOING TO WIN THIS ONE

In the end, Miller was just too much for Richmond ... Checking in to see what happened in the finale in Macon ... Miller and Tucker may not be too much of a state final ... I saw Tucker earlier this year against Centennial and they have trouble with teams that run and Miller Grove runs as well as anyone ...

COMEBACK CITY IN GWINNETT

Richmond Academy has come back and pulled within two ... miller is going to have to turn it on kep from getting upset ...

MILLER GROVE OLDING ON

Richmond is making a comeback...down only by 10 ...

MORE GOOD NEWS FOR TECH FANS

Steven Hill, who will play receiver at Tech, just had an incredible slam ... watch it on VOD

DOWN IN MACON

At half, Wilcox County has a 33-32 lead over Whitefield Academy

HALFTIME AT GWINNETT

Miller Grove looks strong and has just run away from Richmond Academy. Tech fans has something to look forward to in point guard Mfon Udofia....

MILLER GROVE HAS TOO MUCH TALENT TO LOSE THE GAME

As I said pregame, Miller may be the best team in the state at any classification and they are proving it now

DOWN IN MACON

Wilcox County leads Whitefield Academy 22-17 in the second quarter

MILLER GROVE MAKES LATE RUN

Miller Grove scored on their last two possessions of the second quarter to take their first lead since the first minute .... great talent on both sides of the court ... ij

A SLOW START FOR MILLER GROVE

So far, Richmond Academy has come to play and controlling the game....the big miller gorve freshman already has two fouls ...

ONE WE HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR ...

Miller Grove and Richmond are warming up ... This could be a war!

A GREAT COMEBACK FALLS SHORT

Jonesboro came roaring back in the second half and had a chance to tie it but missed three shots in the final 10 seconds as Fayette went to 31-0 on the year ... down in Macon, Savannah Day easily beat SW Atl Cr.

In Macon

As Class A, Savannah Day beat SW Atl by 30

A GREAT GAME

Jonesboro missed three shots in the final 10 seconds and fell ...fayette now 31-0

JONESBORO HAS A CHANCE

Down by two with the ball they can put the shot in ....fayette ball with four seconds left

Miller Grove next

Everyone is waiting to see this boys team play ... Richmond looks nervous!

Getting late in Gwinnett

Down by two, Jonesboro let's the ball slip away ... Fayette up by four and at the line shooting one ... minute left

THEY ARE GOING TO HAVE TO REBUILD GWINNETT ARENA

Jonesboro has tied the game and has the ball ... timeout

GREAT GAME IN GWINNET

TWO TEAMS YELLING AND STOMPING AND TALKING TRASH AS JONESBORO HAS CUT FAYETTE'S LEAD TO TWO WITH A LITTLE MORE THAN FIVE MINUTES LEFT ... COULD THERE BE A HUGE UPSET IN THE MAKING?

JONESBORO MAKING A COMBACK

In an incredible run where Fayette made some mistakesm Jonesboro is within seven and at with the ball...fayette needs a timeout

THIRD QUARTER BEGINS IN GWINNETT

Fayette is up by 14 and in firm control of this one ... they have to be the pick to win it all ... just saw the miller grove boys team ... best team in the state for the boys at any classification ... meanwhile down in macon Savannah County Day is putting a whipping on SW Atl Cr.

Down in Macon

Savannah County Day 31 to 12 over SW Atl Chr. late in the second quarter

THERE GOES FAYETTE

The Tigers are starting to pull away on thhe back of Tessah Holt, who will be playing at Florida next year .... They are up by 13 with three left in the half ... Fayette is a perfect 30-0 this year ....

Second quarter ...

Jonesboro is hanging in there though so far both teams have struggled with their shot ... the senior guards are keeping the Cardinals within striking distance ... also here is a thumbs up for some good looking unis for Jonesboro

THIRD GAME OF THE DAY

This should be a good one though fayette co is considered one of the best in the country ... lot of athletic talent on the court on both sides

Tigers move on

With some stout defense and a great effort by Manny Atkins, the Tucker Tigers move on as they win 72-66.

Manny heating up

Manny Atkins has a huge jam that got the Tucker fans fired up and the Tigers are now up 61 -55 with 3:17 left in the game.

End of 3rd

Tucker is up 52-49 they were able to match the intensity that Bainbridge brought in the second quarter and were able to end the third quarter with the lead. This should make for an exciting fourth . Down in Macon, Turner is up 45-39 at the start of the fourth quarter.

Quick update

Turner County is up 38-28 against Athens Christian at the half. As for the game here at the Gwinnett Center, Bearcats are up 41-39 early in the third.

Halftime update

Bainbridge is up 37-33 at the half. Tucker was down as much as 10 early in the second but made a strong comeback in towards the end of the half. Like I said, it's going to be a tight game.

Bearcats fired up

Bainbridge is showing their toughness as they are up 26-17 midway through the second. The Bearcats have done a great job containing Manny Atkins as he is struggling.

End of first

Game is now tied at 15. Tucker and Bainbridge have had their opportunites to take the lead but turnovers have killed them in the early stages of the contest.

Early update

Game is tied at 11. Both Tucker and Bainbridge are getting a feel for each other and it looks to be a very tight game.

Semifinal Game 2

The Tucker Tigers have loads of talent and are looking to reach the finals for the first time in two years. They are led by Manny Atkins who signed with Virginia Tech.

Bainbridge is making their first Final Four appearence for the first time in school history and are led by James Lodman who is a high-flyer. Melize Johnson led the team with 13 points in their win against Statesboro in the quarterfinals.

SW DeKalb is back in the Finals

With the help of Kayla Lewis who scored 24 points, the Lady Panthers win 80-48. They will have a chance to defend their state title and will take on the Jonesboro-Fayette County winner. Wesleyan also won big 81-53 and will take on the SW Atl Christian-Savannah Co. Day winner starting at 7 p.m.

4th Quarter Update

The Lady Panthers are showing no signs of letting up as they are holding on to a 71-44 lead 5:34 left in the game. Down in Macon, Wesleyan is also rolling along with a 43-20 lead over Randolph-Clay.

Lady Panthers pulling away

Point guard Alondra Rivers is doing a great job controlling the Lady Panther offense and are now ahead 68-39 at the end of the third.

Start of third and Wesleyan-Randolph-Clay Update

Bainbridge is playing more agressive at the begining of the third but are down 51-34 with 5:30 remaining. Wesleyan is still up big 43-20 in the thrid quarter.

At the half

The Lady Panthers have a comfotable 43-27 lead going into halftime. The Tucker and Bainbridge boys teams are warming up as they will tip-off in an hour. Another game that is going on is Welseyan girls have a 33-16 lead over Randloph-Clay and that game is also at the half.

SW Dekalb rolling along

With great ball movement and solid defense, the Lady Panthers are making things tough for Bainbridge as they are up 43-23 with two minutes left in the half.

FIRST QUARTER

Dominating with bigger bodies, SW Dekalb is rolling early; Bainbridge is going ot have to get more physical....

Getting going ....

Bainbridge is going to have a hard time inside with SW....

HERE AT GWINNETT

Score Atlanta is here at Gwinnett Arena ready to webcast and blog....SW Dekalb girls are on the court and an impressive looking group of ladies!

LIVE! GPB is webcasting the semifinals and finals

Watch the Class AAAA and AAAAA semifinals, as well as all finals matchups, live at GPB.org/basketball. The games will also be archived and viewable on-demand.

THE BEST: Georgia's greatest basketball players of all time

With the impact these players made during both their high school careers AND careers following high school, here are Georgia’s all-time girls and boys basketball teams. The starters are listed first with their school name, graduation year and bio, followed by the reserves.

GIRLS

Teresa Edwards (Cairo, 1982): Edwards capped off her high school career by leading her team to a Class AAA state championship and being named a high school All-American. Earning All-SEC honors at Georgia, she led the Lady Dogs to three SEC titles, two Final Fours and one national title game appearance. To top it off, Edwards helped the United States win five Olympic medals (four gold and one bronze).

Delisha Milton-Jones (Bradwell Institute, 1993): The Naismith High School Player of the Year for 1992 and 1993, Milton-Jones’s last Bradwell Institute team went 29-0 before losing in the state title game. She went on to play collegiately at Florida where she was the 1997 SEC Player of the Year. Professionally, she is a two-time WNBA All-Star and has played for two world championship teams. Milton-Jones also has two gold medals from the 2000 and 2008 Olympics.

Lea Henry-Manning (Southwest Georgia Academy, 1979): Playing for the non-GHSA Southwest Georgia Academy, Henry-Manning was named a Kodak All-American as a senior. She moved on to become a four-year starter at Tennessee, helping the Lady Vols win an SEC title and compete for several national titles. From there she assumed the role of starting point guard of the 1984 United States Olympic team, helping the women win a gold medal.

Cindy Brogdon (Greater Atlanta Christian, 1975): After helping GAC win a Class C state championship as a freshman and Class B state championships as a junior and senior, Brogdon played collegiately at Mercer. Not only was she named a collegiate All-American in 1976, but she was also a part of the USA’s gold medal-winning Olympic team. Brogdon later played one season in the Women’s Basketball League.

Maya Moore (Collins Hill, 2007): Despite being less than two full seasons removed from high school, Moore is already well accomplished. Moore led Collins Hill to three consecutive Class AAAAA state championships and was named the Naismith Player of the Year as a senior. Now at Connecticut, Moore’s Huskies reached the Final Four and she won Big East Player of the Year honors as freshman last year. This season, Moore helped the UConn women finish the regular season undefeated.

RESERVES: Sherril Baker (Greater Atlanta Christian, 2002); Kiesha Brown (Woodward Academy, 1996); Tasha Butts (Baldwin, 2000); Deborah Denton (Pace Academy, 1985); Tasha Humphrey (Gainesville, 2004); Tracy Waites (Rockdale County, 1984)

BOYS

Dwight Howard (Southwest Atlanta Christian, 2004): Howard parlayed several national player of the year awards and a Class A state championship into being the first selection of the 2004 NBA Draft. Since being chosen by the Orlando Magic, Howard has become perhaps the most dominant center in the NBA, shooting just under 60 percent from the field and averaging 20 points and 14 rebounds per game last season. He also started for the 2008 gold medal-winning Olympic team.

Walt Frazier (Howard, 1964): Frazier was a star at Atlanta’s Howard High School during the days of segregation. He later showed his talents at Southern Illinois where he led the team to an NIT Championship in 1967. Still, he will always be remembered as the point guard for the New York Knicks, winning the 1970 and 1973 NBA championships. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1987.

Jeff Malone (Southwest Macon, 1979): Playing in one of the most dominant high school programs and on the most dominant team the state has ever seen, Malone helped Southwest Macon win the Class AAA state championship as a junior and the Class AAAA state championship as a senior. He then moved on to play collegiately at Mississippi State, where he averaged over 26 points per game as a senior and was co-SEC Player of the Year in 1983. He took his scoring ability to the NBA, averaging 19 points per game while playing for five teams in his 13-year career.

Dale Ellis (Marietta, 1979): Ellis’s prep career for the Blue Devils did not include any state championships but he was a star nonetheless, earning a scholarship at Tennessee. He was twice named the SEC Player of the Year in college and was eventually drafted to the NBA by Dallas. Ellis made his mark with Seattle, however, as he set the franchise record for points with 2,253 in the 1988-89 season, averaging 27.5 per game. Ellis played 17 seasons in the NBA.

Mike Mitchell (Price, 1974): A sometimes forgotten about Georgia high school hoopster, Mitchell played collegiately at Auburn and made his mark in the NBA, averaging double figures in points in all 10 of his seasons. Mitchell’s career-high average of 24.5 points per game came in 1980-81; he also made the Eastern Conference All-Star team that season, playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers.           

RESERVES: Shareef Abdur-Rahim (Wheeler, 1995); Willie Anderson (East Atlanta, 1984); Horace Grant (Hancock Central, 1983); Norm Nixon (Southwest Macon, 1973); Elmore Smith (Ballard-Hudson, 1967); Josh Smith (McEachern, 2003); Tree Rollins (Crisp County, 1973).

This list was compiled by James Butler and other Score Atlanta writers. Butler can be reached at jbutler@scoreatl.com.

 

A word with the director

GHSA executive director Dr. Ralph Swearngin recently spoke with Score Atlanta’s Alex Ewalt about some of the current issues facing high school sports in the state. Here’s what they talked about:

 

Has the GHSA considered re-seeding the basketball brackets for the tournaments?

 
The big problem with seeding is how to do it and [what to base it on]. I’m not sure season won-loss record is necessarily the way to go. It’s very difficult to get people to agree, especially when they’re involved as coaches in the sport. … My viewpoint was something that an old coach told me when I first got into coaching. He said, people that worry about seeding are worried about who’s going to come in third or fourth. … When we start hearing the problems with bracketing and seeding it’s in the early rounds. And a lot of times it’s because a really good team, for whatever reason, doesn’t win its region.

 

Illegal recruiting is an issue that is often on the minds of high school basketball fans. Could you tell me specifically what is considered recruiting in high school sports?

 
It has to be someone directly related to the school, someone who is school personnel, who contacts the student and encourages them verbally or offers them things to change from one school to another. If a coach has a player in a summer program and then the player transfers to the school, the kid would probably be ineligible. Or if I give you private lessons and you come to my school then that would be illegal. … Most of the time the school’s people don’t have to recruit. The recruiting is done by parents, it’s done by coaches in travel ball and AAU. A lot of people get concerned because people abide by our rules and still a particular school gets loaded with talent. But as long as people live in a free country, it’s very difficult for us as an organization to say, even though you abided by the rules and sold your old house and moved to a new house, you still can’t play for that team.

 

It seems this year the Metro Atlanta basketball fans were upset at their travel times to the sectional sites. What is the system for choosing venues?

 
Number one, we have to have a venue that holds enough people. For AAAA and AAAAA it’s got to be a minimum of 5,000. We really would like something closer to 7,000. I heard just a couple of days ago about this unrest in Metro Atlanta and it astounded me. … If we are not able to secure places like Georgia State, Georgia Tech and the University of Georgia, there’s just no place to do it. In fact, for a couple of years we had to play the third-round games at high school gyms, and we heard a lot of complaints about that. I dare say the complaints about having to travel from Atlanta to Carrollton will be looked at as humorous by the people who have to travel from Augusta to Columbus or from Thomasville to Savannah. Unfortunately that happens and there are not central locations that can meet everybody’s needs.

  

Provided it’s approved in March, next year’s region realignment is very important because it will begin the first four-year realignment cycle, as opposed to the two-year cycle. What are your thoughts on the new system?

 
Interestingly, coaches wanted that because if they’re in situations where they’re shuffling around from one region to another, it’s difficult for them to maintain relationships that help them build high-money gates and rivalries. And from our viewpoint it’s great because it’s like having a root canal once every four years instead of once every two years.

 

There are a number of new schools opening next year. What do you think their impact will be?

 
It always amazes me. People say our schools are overcrowded, and they open up a new school and fill up that school and the other schools are still overcrowded. We really don’t know to what degree the housing crunch is going to redistribute population in our state, whether people are actually going to be leaving the state or coming in because it’s more attractive. There are a whole lot of social issues right now that we really just can’t account for.

 

So far, what are your thoughts on the effectiveness of eliminating the multiplier (which, before this year, multiplied the student populations at private schools by 1.5, oftentimes necessitating they play in a higher class)?

 
It’s way too early to make any comparisons. I’m sure everybody is making comparisons on their own, with or without data. We did a yearlong study and found out that the multiplier didn’t do anything. The private schools that were winning and doing well and making final four appearances before the multiplier made the same amount of Final Four appearances with the multiplier. It didn’t really matter, and it was catching the attention of legislators who said it’s not fair to say that in some schools kids count as one and in other schools kids count as one and a half.

Ewalt can be reached at aewalt@scoreatl.com.