Rankings: Norcross is No. 1, then what? And what is Milton’s legacy?
Congrats to Norcross, the first school since Murphy of Atlanta in 1958 to win boys and girls basketball titles in the same year in the highest classification.
Before we get into the impossible task of ranking Georgia’s Class AAAAA, boys or girls, let’s discuss Milton-Norcross.
First, it was not a huge upset. This is basketball, and Norcross had a national-caliber team in its own right with four guys headed to Division I programs. Once it got its act together, Norcross was one of the best 25 teams in the country the past few weeks.
Second, Milton still is one of the best teams in Georgia history. So is Norcross. In 1979, SW Macon didn’t play any teams as good as Miller Grove and Norcross.
For better or worse, the top teams today are more talented than most from a generation before because they’re built, not grown. State titles in Class AAAAA can’t be won any more without multiple player transfers. The third-best team this season – take your pick: Milton, Norcross, Miller Grove – was more talented than most Class AAAA champions from the ’80 and ‘90s. Take shots at Milton all you want, but that starting five is one of the best Georgia has seen. It won a state title as juniors and challenged for a national title as seniors.
As for the rankings, it comes down to this: How do we rate quality wins and strength of schedule vs. rounds advanced in the state playoffs?
Tift, Valdosta and Newton are fortunate that Collins Hill, Campbell and South Gwinnett had bad nights at the wrong time, IMO. Not saying they aren’t worthy of the top 10, but I’d love to see a different state draw format, or more top ATL and South Georgia teams getting together in the regular season.
Here’s a stab at it.
Class AAAAA
1. Norcross (24-9)
2. Milton (29-3)
3. Wheeler (23-7)
4. Peachtree Ridge (22-6)
5. Tift County (24-7)
6. Mill Creek (18-12)
7. Walton (19-7)
8. Valdosta (23-6)
9. Newton (26-5)
10. North Gwinnett (18-10)
Class AAAA
1. Miller Grove (32-1)
2. Rockdale County (26-6)
3. Fayette County (30-3)
4. Jonesboro (28-4)
5. Southwest DeKalb (24-6)
6. Sequoyah (29-1)
7. Lovejoy (25-5)
8. Bainbridge (27-3)
9. Villa Rica (25-6)
10. Tucker (23-6)
Class AAA
1. Columbia (30-3)
2. Butler (25-8)
3. Franklin County (25-6)
4. Eagle’s Landing (26-5)
5. Carrollton (22-6)
6. Troup (22-5)
7. Washington County (25-5)
8. West Hall (24-6)
9. Murray County (26-3)
10. Drew (16-10)
Class AA
1. Greater Atlanta Christian (28-5)
2. Buford (24-9)
3. Laney (29-2)
4. South Atlanta (28-3)
5. Swainsboro (19-8)
6. Thomasville (26-4)
7. East Hall (25-6)
8. Rockmart (28-3)
9. Kendrick (22-7)
10. Lamar County (27-4)
Class A
1. Wilkinson County (32-0)
2. Terrell County (27-4)
3. Greenville (27-4)
4. Whitefield Academy (28-4)
5. Wilcox County (23-3)
6. Pace Academy (26-4)
7. Turner County (22-10)
8. North Cobb Christian (28-3)
9. Lanier County (22-6)
10. Paideia (22-7)
GIRLS
Class AAAAA
1. Norcross (29-3)
2. Campbell (25-7)
3. McEachern (25-7)
4. North Gwinnett (22-7)
5. Mill Creek (18-14)
6. Hillgrove (22-6)
7. Roswell (22-8)
8. North Cobb (25-6)
9. Milton (19-6)
10. Alpharetta (22-6)
Class AAAA
1. Fayette County (28-5)
2. Forest Park (26-6)
3. Chattahoochee (28-4)
4. Douglas County (30-1)
5. Statesboro (26-4)
6. Alcovy (25-4)
7. Clarke Central (26-5)
8. McIntosh (26-5)
9. Miller Grove (20-10)
10. Chamblee (23-1)
Class AAA
1. Washington County (32-0)
2. Dalton (32-1)
3. Columbia (25-7)
4. St. Pius (25-6)
5. Westover (25-6)
6. Sandy Creek (23-5)
7. Crisp County (15-15)
8. Grovetown (25-3)
9. Butler (16-15)
10. Cartersville (19-12)
Class AA
1. Buford (29-3)
2. Greater Atlanta Christian (25-8)
3. Laney (29-2)
4. Kendrick (29-1)
5. Northeast-Macon (28-4)
6. Morgan County (23-7)
7. Thomasville (24-3)
8. Dodge County (19-10)
9. Vidalia (27-1)
10. Rabun County (27-4)
Class A
1. Wesleyan (31-2)
2. Pace Academy (27-6)
3. St. Francis (24-4)
4. SW Atlanta Christian (24-5)
5. Turner County (24-7)
6. Calvary Day (26-6)
7. Taylor County (24-3)
8. Bryan County (27-4)
9. Darlington (25-5)
10. Towns County (27-2)
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118 comments Add your comment
THEHILLISREAL
March 14th, 2011
12:15 pm
HMMMMM! I think that 1979 SW ATL was a pretty good team 30-1 and State Championship only loss to SW Macon. Notable players Gerald Wilkins & Joey Browner, AUgust Curley… Two NFL Players and a NBA player. Both teams were home grown not recruited to play at a certain school.
Love4Basketball
March 14th, 2011
12:16 pm
I am so tired hearing that these school recruit. I moved my child to one of these school 2 years ago because I wanted him in a good program. I was never once was contacted by the coach. What is wrong with parents wanting their kids in a good program? Whether it be for football, basketball, soccer or track. Those of you that are complaining help your school build a good program and maybe people will want to transfer over. I don’t feel guilty one bit, I want my child to have the best opportunity available and I feel like I made the right choice.
MGHS-alum
March 14th, 2011
12:36 pm
Recruiting, good question….. I bet no one will answer you. I am a recent graduate from Miller Grove and one thing i can say for sure it’s not easy to make that team!!!!
I know of several transfers out because they didn’t make the team but ended up playing at a different school, but because Tucker and CArver(Atlanta) are not champions nobody cares!
Michael
March 14th, 2011
12:38 pm
Todd,
‘
This is addressed to you and Burr. Back in the original blogs I disputed you and Burrr on where Milton should be ranked. I said they were alright but they had no low post presence and that was a major flaw. I also said that Norcross would probably win if the score was in the fifties. When scoring is low and and half court takes over you need low post and defense. It turns out my predictions were all right on. Burr for you you mentioned that this Milton team was better than the Aminu team with Tariq Muhammed. Tariq had a scholarship to Miami he didn’t have the grades and he is a superior passer and dribbler. They also ended up with four D! caliber players. Aminu is a lottery pick. Scott is really good but probably not a lottery pick. Basketball can be a fight of wills and who controls tempo. The Milton Norcross game was controlled by Norcross’s tempo for 22 of the 32 minutes. That is why they won. Burrr learn something about basketball. By the way at least Norcross has an actual diverse student body.
WAR
March 14th, 2011
1:07 pm
no one recalls when miller grove had freshmen playing more savvy, well developed programs when the school first opened. coach white and coach johnson worked their butts off and so did the students. they won championships because they work at it. by the way, many of the basketball players are div. 1 caliber AND they have the grades/test scores to match.
coach white is the coach k of high school basketball: recruit smart students who happen to play basketball
BullDawgRick
March 14th, 2011
2:14 pm
Uhh Petey – You are WRONG on the players from GAC & Wesleyean..
GAC – Brogdon is a top 5 player (IMO he’s the best) in the entire state & is going to Virginia
Wesleyean – Ever heard of Trey Thompkins?? First team All SEC at UGA..
Point I’m calling you out on is, these guys play in A & AA & are “tested” – they contribute at the next level very well…. So do not be “sad” for them.. You’re probably sad that they have such talent & a future beyong the HardWood…
Coach Who Knows
March 14th, 2011
2:14 pm
Your answer for Miller Grove is “zero” for this year! I have seen MG basketball for years now, and for the exception of Henry Brooks(arrived at MG his sophmore year), all of the players on this year’s championship team has been apart of the program since their freshman year of high school and they all played bball at the feeder middle schools! So, the respect should be given to the coaches for helping these young men develop their talents!!! Good job MG coaches!!
Goodman
March 14th, 2011
2:38 pm
Who’ the All-time best team? Impossible to say. But, I will say that the “79 Southwest Macon team was the most dominate team, within it’s level of competition, I have ever seen…high school, college, or pro,
Three Straight Plus One
March 14th, 2011
3:00 pm
I think Norcross boys varsity team should be considered the best 5-AAAAA team in the decade and this is why:
*won 4 of the last 6 state championships
*won 5 of last 7 region championships
*Elite 8 in State or better in last 7 years
*2nd or better in Region last 10 years
*Only lost 34 of the last 304 games or won 89%
*won every home game since mid 2002 or approx. 90 straight home games
*29 players have earned college scholarships
*6 players are professional players
mike
March 14th, 2011
3:07 pm
Funny how people try to compare teams from different time periods. You can do that if you have no clue about high school basketball of those eras. You do it when you don’t know but think you have a point to make. Gwinnett finally have people move into that county with kids who play ball. For years it was not like that. As I have seen with other areas of the metro Atlanta, when people lose, can’t win, the first thing that comes out is recruitment, transfers and all the rest of the clap trap people say when they lose. If your school or your kids can’t win on the court, try a little harder next time. Stop crying like babies.
highfliers
March 14th, 2011
3:38 pm
Woodward definitely top 10 in AAA with 22-8 record….lost to Columbia by 2…Head Coach Anthony Thomas an up and comer…needs to work on his player communication skills and not worry about legacy issues, if you know what I mean.
Silk
March 14th, 2011
3:46 pm
Wilkinson Co recruits, had two this year, one from Dublin and one from Baldwin. Had four the last time they won!
Wolverines
March 14th, 2011
4:09 pm
People, please have concrete evidennce before you accuse a program or school on recruiting. Does it go on, yes? But recruiting has been going for decades. How does one classify recruiting? If player ‘A’ enrolls at a school as a 9th grader, but didn’t attend the feeder middle school is that classified as recruiting?
In Miller Grove’s case, as previously stated, Henry Brooks came to MG as a sophomore, from Landmark Christian. In addition, his family moved to ATL a short time after Hurrican Katrina hit New Orleans. The rest of the team have been playing at MGHS since their 9th grade season. Outside of Brooks, Tony Parker is the only Wolverine to play on varsity since freshman year, the rest were developed on phenomenal JV teams.
Give coach S. White his credit..
Just a fan
March 14th, 2011
4:22 pm
Milton recruits in more sports than basketball- a formal complaint was filed against them for football recruiting, and they did it in lacrosse too. They took the two top scorers from Centennial High School and then made them team captains for the game against Centennial, just to rub it in. the AD resigned in Dec for “health reasons’ so maybe the school will clean up its act, but i doubt it. the culture there supports it.
burrr
March 14th, 2011
4:31 pm
@michael They do have a post a presence what Milton’s problem was is that Royal is very inconsistent, and seems unmotivated. Taariq did not have an offer from miami, the only offer listed on rivals and scout is uab. I never compared Scott to Aminu either, im pretty sure i said Aminu is the best player on either team. I’ve seen Royal play against player far better than Alonzo and get the better of them. Alonzo got the better end of Royal in the championship. In Georgia it easy to dominate with size period. With skilled size it even easier, Which is why Norcross dominated so well with their huge frontline. However they lost out of state to teams with size. I’d still say Milton can match up with that norcross team, and would without a doubt win a series with this years Norcross team. Norcross won when it counted this year so thats all that matters.
wolfman
March 14th, 2011
4:45 pm
@Petey: Not tested? Wesleyan girls lost to Norcross by 1, beat Hoover (AAAAA from Alabama), etc…
Michael
March 14th, 2011
4:46 pm
they did not have post presence. Every person said the Royal faces the basket. Post presence means your back is to the basket. There are 3 moves off the post a scoop, a turn around and a hook. he exhibited none of these moves. If anything he played a high post. secondly, it doesn’t have to be your big man posting. Adrian Dantley posted for the Pistons at 6′4″. Milton was a slash team that worked off of Scott’s penetration. As I mentioned make Scott score thirty to win and I said that if the score was in the fifties that Norcross could win. Now what was your prediction and what was mine and who was right.
Michael
March 14th, 2011
5:05 pm
Burr,
It’s not only in Georgia that size and skill dominates. It is at all levels in every league in the country. That is why there is always a call for a big man. There are two things you can’t teach speed and size. Julian’s downfall is he is lead footed or as I used to describe Jon Koncak. “Mr cement feet”.The game is all about quickness and speed because the guy you are guarding is about the same size as you so the one who is quicker get’s the advantage. In the half court game it is lateral movement that counts.
Lonnie Walls
March 14th, 2011
5:36 pm
Let me give you some help with the SW Macon vs. Milton Argument! No 3-pt in 79 Southwest had Jeff Malone as the 3rd leading scorer and a deadeye shooter just think what he would do with the 3 pt. Let’s break it down with matchups.
SF- Michael Hunt vs Nolte Hunt was a great player would give up 4 inches. Nolte can shoot and play the floor.
PF- Hook Mcarthy vs Shaquille Johnson desire and hard work!
C. Terry Fair vs. Julian Royal Fair would kill him inside. Remember he struggled against big strong centers
SG- Jeff Malone vs. Dai jon Parker NBA range three pointer.
PG- Bobby Jones Western Kentucky vs. Shannon Scott the only one Milton wins hands down but Jones was a college starter and great facilitator. I think Southwest had competition from Darrel Lockhart, Dale Ellis, Lamar Heard, as well as a great NE team plus Baldwin County was where the world famous BC camp took place and don’t forget Dollar and his pipeline to Auburn from Douglas in Atlanta. AAU has equalized the competition for small school stars like Nick Marshall, Kentavious Caldwell among others but teams like Southwest with former pros was a pipeline for stars.
Michael
March 14th, 2011
5:48 pm
Why are we even discussing Milton. They in reality lost in the quarters to Norcross last year and they lost this year. If you are dominant team then you win. bottom line
Peach County Fan
March 14th, 2011
6:06 pm
Georgia have your fun this year because for the next 3 years Peach County Trojans will be dominating basketball like they do football. The two freshman phenoms are on the rise.(Hill 10, Sams 21)
onlooker
March 14th, 2011
6:21 pm
mg had no one come in last yr
randy perry
March 14th, 2011
6:37 pm
Milton,Norcross,and Miller Grove I believe all 3 school are recruiting and some others school as well. There no way a high school can have all the best players each year and I don;t think it fair to the others school and I think the GHSA need to step in and do something about it. So GHSA start looking to see if the student are playing at the right school. I am looking forward to hearing from you.
Just me
March 14th, 2011
7:14 pm
Everybody’s lumping GAC in with those other schools, but the boys’ and girls’ teams only had one transfer each. All the other kids on the team have been at GAC for MANY years. The transfer on the girls’ team came from out of state. Stop making excuses and beat us.
Confused
March 14th, 2011
7:16 pm
@Wolverines!! Yes Miller Grove benefits greatly from transfer-ins/recruiting. If the kid went to an elementary or middle school that feeds into a different Dekalb County school and transfers to MG in the 9th grade its still shady business and unfair. If they rent an apartment in MGHS district to play b-ball it’s shady business……..
If your child is so great he/she should be able to win and put their local school on the map…don’t give me that exposure crap……if the kid can ball the coaches and scholly offers will find them wherever they happen to play.
Angry parent
March 14th, 2011
7:35 pm
Confused u picked the right name because u have no idea if these families relocated for the reason of exposure or not, because if that is the case perfectly legal according to GHSA!
Both r risky business, transferring/recruiting and taking the chance of not getting the offers being at the right place at the right time at the expense of the parents if they choose to relocate for the well being of their child what parent could blame them.
My family have been in a similar position and were fortunate enough to purchase a home within the proper zone & rent the previous home out to someone else this all for the sake of my child’s future which land full scholarships from all over the U.S.
In my opinion there is too much focus on things that don’t concern you.
Nato145
March 14th, 2011
9:45 pm
Help me understand something about the Norcross/Milton final. Shannon Scott owned the Blue Devils in the 2nd quarter. He wasn’t a factor after half time–maybe only 2 points to finish with 16. Was it Norcross defense or Milton coaching?
Zone3canE
March 14th, 2011
10:11 pm
Miller Grove people there’s no need to defend yourself. People who are really from Atlanta no yall ain’t gotta RECRUIT nobody cause yall got BALLERS in yall SCHOOL ZONE. Let’s stay focused people the CHEATERS are real easy to remember, NORCROSS, MILTON, and WHEELER! Say it with me NORCROSS, MILTON, and WHEELER! People who are not from Atlanta might not know there’s a big difference in the NORTH METRO AREA, and the SOUTH METRO AREA of Atlanta. SOUTH FULTON, SOUTH DeKALB, THE CITY of ATLANTA and CLAYTON CO. are loaded with BALLPLAYERS, obviously the NORTH METRO AREA is not that’s why they continuosly raid our communities for THE BEST B-BALL PLAYERS they can CON into helping them STEAL CHAMPIONSHIPS. Congrats to MILLER GROVE and COLUMBIA true champions!
Three Straight Plus One
March 15th, 2011
5:51 am
Norcross is known for it effective defense. In 2008, an unmanned Norcross beat a highly tallented Wheeler for the state championship. This year since figuring out how to play together, Norcross kept the last 17 teams under 61 points and 16 under 57 while avg 65.
Michael
March 15th, 2011
8:19 am
I beg to differ on the 2008 team. They played beautifully as a team and had a lottery pick on the team. They had the right components to play including a dynamite point guard who really knew how to play the point. They were able to mix inside and out and if you remember the ESPN game the announcers said that Norcross was the best team they saw that year.
andre
March 15th, 2011
8:40 am
congrats to turner county boys and girls basketball team.they going to be great next year returning alot
Proud Georgian
March 15th, 2011
11:43 am
“State titles in Class AAAAA can’t be won any more without multiple player transfers”
What a crying shame!
Hahaha
March 15th, 2011
11:51 am
Peach County Fan
March 14th, 2011
6:06 pm
Georgia have your fun this year because for the next 3 years Peach County Trojans will be dominating basketball like they do football. The two freshman phenoms are on the rise.(Hill 10, Sams 21)”
IF THEY ARE THAT GOOD THEY WILL BE TRANSFERRING TO NORCROSS, MILTON OR WHEELER!
BS
March 15th, 2011
11:58 am
How stupid is the folks that run Georgia Highscool sports? Allow some schools to recriut and skedule the team they stole their player from?
Hahahahahahahahahahaha
skip
March 15th, 2011
12:02 pm
Zone3Cane:
Are you frikin kidding me? EVERY person who is not from Atlanta knows there’s a big difference in the NORTH METRO AREA, and the SOUTH METRO AREA of Atlanta.
skip
March 15th, 2011
12:08 pm
black1
March 13th, 2011
6:29 pm
This state is lagging
DELTA IS READY WHEN YOU ARE BIG MAN!
Show me
March 15th, 2011
12:25 pm
Show me a quarter final team that did not have a transfer and I will show you a team that won’t make the quarters next year. Make the player (AND COACH) sit out a year when transferring and see how many trasfers you have? Common sense folks. Something the GHSA lacks a great deal of!
Show me
March 15th, 2011
12:27 pm
Whatever happen to the private school that could recruit having to compete up one class?
black1
March 15th, 2011
12:59 pm
Ok so what u saying lil man. Well nobody is hating on MG. And their players didnt come from the same middle school team. Parker played at two different middle schools. Redan and Stephenson. So he should be playing for Redan and Steph. High. We all know this is out of control and alot of people are saying it now. Some other players played at different middle school. So is it smart to recruit them as an 8th grader and make it appear that they are legit as a freshman.
peter
March 15th, 2011
1:02 pm
Wesleyan recruits– Trey Thompkins.. GAC recruits–Malcolm Brgdan
JustMyOpinon
March 15th, 2011
1:40 pm
No coach has to recruit in DeKalb, Ballers are everywhere. If you coach at any school that feeds off of I-20 east, you should be fired for not winning.
AAAA-Fan
March 15th, 2011
1:46 pm
To everyone, mainly black1
It’s evident that this family moved around frequently if Tony parker went to two different middle schools with only 3 grades. Why couldn’t it be that his parents were looking to a perfect fit for Tony and they found it at Miller Grove. and not just because he went to a certain middle school does not permanently force him to attend the feeder high school if the family no longer reside in that zone.
You people must not have any children!!!!!
It is not ideal to move your children in the middle of the school year so why not let the child finish at one school and then move and transfer your child to the correct school of origin.
And to answer your last question recruiting at anytime by any means is not wise. But for the assumption to be made that parker should be playing at one of these two schools is absurd because regardless of which of these two schools he was playing ball the other one would have a problem.
People just have to have something to talk about and right now it’s Tony Parker.
Good Luck Tony in whatever and wherever your path leads you.
Fly McFaddin
March 15th, 2011
2:10 pm
@JustMO
If what you say about I-20 east is true, what’s wrong with Lithonia High?
Show me
March 15th, 2011
2:33 pm
I personally think basketball should be dropped as a sport. Nothing but problems and bad press like this thread
Show me
March 15th, 2011
2:37 pm
Schools that recruit should not be allowed to play schools that don’t. Even tournaments. Programs that have the funds to recruit should use the funds for travel expenses to play the other 40 teams in the state that play by YOUR rules
Show me
March 15th, 2011
2:38 pm
black1:
Stay off the adult blogs will you?
Tired of ATL embarrassing all of GA
March 15th, 2011
4:00 pm
Everybody thinks South/middle Georgia hoops can’t compare with ATL area hoops, but the truth is South/middle Georgia Hoops just can’t compare with the “all-atlanta area AAU recruited high school teams”. Check the history!!! Middle and south ga won all the time in hoops up until the this recruiting era. Tift County, Valdosta, Savannah, and Beach high school have all gone to the final four or semis in recent history for AAAAA (None of which are really AAAAA in enrollment). These schools lost to similiar teams Wheeler, Norcross, and Milton. Other cities in GA like Augusta, Albany, Macon, and Columbus have similiar complaints with the smaller public and private classification schools doing the same thing up in ATL……
VALDOSTA is the true AAAAA champs in my opinion.
Cinque Johnson
March 15th, 2011
4:34 pm
Boyd simply “overcoached” in the championship game against Norcross!!!! He is an excellent coach and his record bears this out, but why switch to the “4-corner’s offense” when it was not necessary? His strategy at the end of the game is what the under dog does!
Petey
March 15th, 2011
5:55 pm
BULLDAWGRick, 1st the jury is still way out on Brogdan. He is likely to be slower to adjust to the D1 game springboarding from GAC after basically coasting there for 2 years. He was well coached by Martin there.
Tompkins spent a year at Oak Hill. He recognized the benefit of playing top notch competition. Possibly he’s all SEC because he’s a SR and most of the NBA guys leave after their 1st or 2nd year of college?
Wolfman, I was talking about boys basketball. D1 level girls are pretty good but they are few and far between.
Michael
March 15th, 2011
6:44 pm
Boyd didn’t overcoach. McMillan grabbed the tempo and never let Boyd get it back. Basketball is about who controls tempo when the teams are basically evenly matched. Case in point.Knicks- Boston in the seventies(if Boston controlled tempo the score was in the 100’s and Boston won) Lakers- Boston in the eighties. If Boston slowed it to half court they won and if it was showtime the Lakers won.