Archive for March, 2011

The 2011 state high school basketball tourney is ON.

AJC high schools beat writer Michael Carvell will take your questions about high school basketball and related topics.

We are here to talk hoops, hoops and more hoops. Going to a game? Take the cellphone or PDA and let us know what’s going on. Got a score update or a shout-out? Keep it clean and POST IT HERE.

Note: Stick to basketball talk. Personally insulting other commenters will not be tolerated. Thanks. - AJC Sports

SCORE ATLANTA: TOURNAMENT SCOREBOARDS

Girls updates | Boys updates

TOURNAMENT INFO: PAIRINGS

2011 Georgia State Tournament brackets
BOYS: AAAAA | AAAA | AAA | AA | A
GIRLS: AAAAA | AAAA | AAA | AA | A

PHOTOS: THE STATE CHAMPS

FROM SATURDAY

Class A Boys final: Wilkinson County finishes season unbeaten, champions

Class A Girls final: Wesleyan’s dominance continues with eighth title since 2002

Continue reading 2011 Georgia High School Basketball Tournament: Talk semifinals and state championship games »

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Norcross High’s Diamond DeShields says she has been dreaming about dunking since she was a baby.

That’s right. DeShields is a girls basketball player, and a very good one. Some consider DeShields — the daughter of former MLB player Delino DeShields — to be the No. 1 sophomore in the nation.

The 6-foot DeShields nearly dunked against Milton in last Saturday’s quarterfinals of the basketball playoffs. DeShields got loose on a fast break, had a rush of adrenaline, and grabbed the rim as she elevated for a … layup.

Will No. 22 dunk before she finishes high school? (AJC)

It wasn’t a dunk, but it made everybody watching realizing that a dunk may be coming soon. DeShields is 6-foot and has two more years left in high school to accomplish it.

“I didn’t realize how far my hand was above the rim until I got up in the air and put my hand into the basket,” DeShields said. “I felt like I …

Continue reading Norcross High’s Diamond DeShields discusses dunking for girls »

GPB will provide live broadcast coverage of the GHSA state championship basketball games on Friday and Saturday from both Gwinnett Arena and the Macon Centreplex.

For the first time, GPB will provide wall-to-wall coverage with expert analysis and interviews between games, along with the the trophy presentations.

In addition, GPB will provide  live webcasts of the games. On the day of broadcast, viewers may go to www.GPB.org/sports to watch the games live on the web. Fans can interact as a part of the broadcast by participating in a live chat on gpb.org./sports.

And, for the eighth consecutive year, GPB will show the annual AAASP Wheelchair Basketball Championship, which will be webcasted live Friday at 12:15 p.m. and broadcasted on GPB Saturday at 9:30 AM.

Also, beginning Wednesday, all 20 semifinal games will be webcast on GPB.org/sports and GHSA.tv.

– Information courtesy of GPB

Continue reading GPB to broadcast basketball state championships and semifinals on TV, webcasts »

The semifinals of the state basketball tournament begin Wednesday at the Gwinnett Place Arena and Macon Coliseum.

Here are some random thoughts on the teams that are left. Tell me where I’m wrong.

BOYS

AAAAA – Milton is one of the best teams in Georgia history and should beat Norcross in the final. Norcross is good enough to beat Milton, but probably won’t. Third-best team in the state is Wheeler. Region 4 (Harrison, McEachern, Campbell, etc.) was a flop. (I picked Harrison & McEachern to make the semis. Wrong!) Region 8 also didn’t do so well. Otherwise, it went as expected. Tift County is pretty good, and the freshman Tadrik Jackson is special. Saw the Devils in Fort Valley. Having said that, I’m not sure there aren’t four or five in teams in Gwinnett County that are as good or better than any team in regions 1-4. Milton and Norcross win by 20+ this week in the semis.

AAAA – These are four legit state championship contenders in the Final Four. Miller Grove clearly is the …

Continue reading On to the final fours: Who’ve you got? »

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The showdown between UGA recruits Nick Marshall of Wilcox County and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope of Greenville High lived up to its advanced billing in this weekend’s state playoffs.

Greenville edged Wilcox County 77-75 in the Class A quarterfinals. Marshall, who signed with Georgia on a football scholarship and plans to “walk on” the school’s basketball team, finished with 16 points. Caldwell-Pope, who signed with Georgia on a basketball scholarship and has been selected to play in the McDonald’s All-America game, exploded for 40 points, including six 3-pointers.

The AJC’s S. Thomas Coleman was at the game and offered his insight:

First, I think it’s appropriate to mention the coaches and other players because as Greenville coach …

Continue reading UGA-bound basketball recruits: Wilcox County’s Nick Marshall vs. Greenville’s Kentavious Caldwell-Pope »

Friday was a good day for Miller Grove High’s Henry Brooks, one of the state’s top unsigned college basketball prospects.

Earlier in the day, Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl called to officially offer a scholarship to the 6-foot-7 forward who has a 3.9 GPA. “Tennessee loves Henry’s tenacity,” Miller Grove coach Sharman White said. “He’s a high-energy player who is defensive-minded. Tennessee thinks he’s a good fit for what they do.”

Brooks was excited about the offer. “I don’t know what I’m going to do yet, but it was good news. Tennessee has a great basketball program and it’s close to home so my friends and family can see me play. I’m definitely very interested.”

Brooks also has a scholarship offer from ex-UGA coach Tubby Smith, who now coaches at Minnesota. UConn also called on Friday to inquire about Brooks. Missouri and Washington are also evaluating Brooks for a possible offer.

Later in the day, Brooks and Miller Grove defeated Villa Rica 79-54 in the Class AAAA …

Continue reading Tennessee Volunteers offer late scholarship to Miller Grove’s Henry Brooks »

CARROLLTON — After 31 years as Douglas County’s basketball coach, Chet Forsh finally will take his girls to the state semifinals.

Kristina Wells scored 26 points in a 61-50 win over Miller Grove in Friday’s Class AAAA quarterfinals at West Georgia.

“I think I’ve had teams that could’ve made the Final Four before, but it doesn’t take a lot to stumble in the playoffs,” said Forsh, 59. “All it takes is one bad game, and one good game from the other team.”

Douglas  County (30-0) may be the state’s best team that no one really knows about. The Douglasville school was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs the past three seasons.

“We’re on the west side and never really gotten respect,” Forsh said. “We’re [seemingly] not in metro Atlanta, and we’re not in Gwinnett County, so some people think we must not be any good … or it seems that way to me.

“So we just have to earn people’s respect. I hope at this point we’ve done a little of that.”

For the rest of the story, click here

Continue reading Douglas County coach Chet Forsh to make appearance in state semifinals after 31 years »

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Georgia Tech’s top basketball recruit will ask for a scholarship release and consider other schools if Paul Hewitt is not coaching the team next season.

Milton High’s Julian Royal signed with Tech over Georgia last November. The 6-foot-8 power forward cited his close relationship with Hewitt as a deciding factor. Royal was the coach’s No. 1 target for Tech’s 2011 recruiting class.

Hewitt’s future at Tech is under speculation with his team dwindling near the bottom of the ACC standings.

“If something were to happen, it would only make sense to re-open recruiting,” said the …

Continue reading Georgia Tech risks losing No. 1 basketball recruit if coach Paul Hewitt leaves »

On Tuesday, DeKalb County Schools went 3-0 in Sweet 16 play of the high school basketball state playoffs with a Columbia sweep at home and an overtime victory by Miller Grove in girls’ action on the road.