Class A Div II Blog: State Championship preview

BOYS

3.7.25 3:00 PM

McINTOSH COUNTY ACADEMY vs. SAVANNAH

DID YOU KNOW?

With a finals victory, Savannah can win its 12th all-time state title and McIntosh County Academy can become a first-ever state champion.

McINTOSH COUNTY ACADEMY | BUCCANEERS 26-5 REGION 3

McIntosh County Academy can make history on Friday and secure the programs first-ever state title after successfully advancing to the finals. In the semifinals, McIntosh County Academy was tied with Greene County 23-23 at the half. The Buccaneers were outscored in the third quarter and trailed by five points heading into the fourth quarter, but answered with superb defense and closed out the 49-41 victory. McIntosh County Academys defense was so effective in the fourth quarter that the team was able to outscore Greene County 16-3 in the final frame and cruise to an eight-point victory. Senior Jayden Ellis led the way with a game-high 21 points and MJ Quarterman finished with 14 points to go with his team-high 11 rebounds. Craig Battle also came up big with seven assists, eight rebounds and six points. Defense has been a staple to MCAs success throughout the season and during their playoff run. In the quarterfinals, McIntosh County Academy defeated Mitchell County 60-32. The Bucs held the Eagles to just four points in the first quarter and led 25-11 at the half before closing out the victory. Junior Jalen Drake knocked down two of the teams five made three-pointers and eight different players provided points in the victory. McIntosh County Academy opened the playoffs with a 72-58 win over Wheeler County and then eliminated Taylor County with a 48-35 victory in the Sweet Sixteen.

SAVANNAH | BLUEJACKETS 26-4 REGION 3

Savannah survived a 64-55 win over Warren County in the semifinals to advance to Macon and move one victory away from capturing its first state title since the 1998 season. Savannah has been ranked No. 1 in Class A Div. II for most of the season and its only loss within the classification came to McIntosh County Academy (48-47) on Jan. 7. The Bluejackets avenged that loss just weeks later with a 56-46 victory over the Bucs and then took this seasons third-meeting 48-45 on Feb. 14 to earn the top seed out of Region 3. In the playoffs, Savannah opened with a 75-39 victory against Wilcox County. The Bluejackets advanced to take on Manchester in the second round and ran away with a 65-49 win. Savannah led 15-10 after the first quarter and 22-13 at the half before outscoring the Blue Devils 43-36 in an up-tempo second half of play. In the quarterfinals, Savannah started strong and held off Early County 69-42limiting the Bobcats to just 1-of-14 shooting from beyond the arc. In the semifinals, Savannah held off Warren Countys second-half surge with a late 10-5 run to earn its spot in the finals. Senior Maki Joyner led the way with 19 points, while Chance Hendricks and Jermontae Brown each finished with 17 points. Zyaire Smart also contributed on both sides for the floor and finished with nine points.

GIRLS

3.7.25 1:00 PM

WASHINGTON-WILKES vs. WILCOX COUNTY

DID YOU KNOW?

Wilcox County and Washington-Wilkes are both in search of first-ever state titles.

WASHINGTON-WILKES | TIGERS 14-8 REGION 8

It has already been a breakthrough season for the Washington-Wilkes program and now the Tigers are a win away from achieving a historic championship. The Tigers opened their postseason with a 66-48 victory over Brooks County. Freshman Myasia Lewis (18), senior Crew Lanaysia (14), sophomore Kaidyn Porter (12) and freshman Zion Bankston (10) all reached double-figures in the victory. Samaria Young stuffed the stat sheet with 13 points, 11 rebounds, four steals and three assists in the teams 64-39 win over Seminole County in the Sweet Sixteen. The freshman was joined by Bankstonwho netted a team-high 15 points off an efficient 7-of-11 shooting from the field. In the quarterfinals, Washington-Wilkes outscored Telfair County 38-22 in the second half to rally to a 54-51 victory. The team produced 20 stealsincluding five from Lanaysia Crewwho finished with 16 points. Young contributed 18 points and seven rebounds. The victory sent Washington-Wilkes to the semifinals for the first time in program history where they faced a 22-3 Macon County team. In the semifinals, Washington-Wilkes burst to a 23-16 lead after the opening quarter but led by just two (34-32) at the half. The Tigers regained control in the third quarter, building a 52-42 lead and holding on for a 66-55 victory. Crew, Young and Lewis are each averaging in double-figures this season and Younga freshmanhas also led the way with a team-high eight rebounds per game.

WILCOX COUNTY | PATRIOTS 27-1 REGION 4

The Wilcox County girls were the first team to earn a trip to the Macon Coliseum on Friday after scoring a 75-47 victory over Screven Countyopening the slate with a 28-point victory to stamp their 26th-straight victory. Wilcox County opened the playoffs ranked No. 1 in Class A Div. II and had won 23-straight games since their lone loss (56-50) to Class 5A's Lee County back on Dec. 7. Wilcox County has not lost within the classification this season and is now one victory away from capturing its first-ever state title. Last season, Wilcox County finished 27-3 and fell 57-42 to eventual state champion Greenforest Christianwhich is now in the Class A-3A Private field. In Fridays 75-47 victory, Wilcox County dominated from start to finish and built a 51-28 lead at the half. Zariah Martin closed out the third quarter with back-to-back field goals to help grow the lead to 60-37 at the end of the third quarter before the Patriots outscored the Gamecocks 15-10 in the final frame. Sophomore Shamauri Martin led with a game-high 30 points. In Wilcox Countys 75-45 win over Randolph-Clay in the quarterfinals, Zariah Martin (26), Shamauri Martin (16), Lezlee Roberts (10) and sophomore Tyliyah Benjamin (11) all reached double-figures. Shamauri scored a team-high 27 points in the teams 58-40 win over Taylor County and Benjamin went off for a game-high 26 points in the 61-44 opening-round victory over Portal.