South Cobb gets early postseaon prep in win

AUSTELL, GA – For South Cobb High School, the games played at the start of the season are meant for preparation for the postseason. On Saturday, the Eagles learned a little something about what it will take to advance in the state tournament.

South Cobb picked apart Savannah High School 78-62 at home in a game that was dominated by guard play.

New South Cobb (3-2) head coach Daniel Bowles said the win was big for his Eagles club.

“Anytime you can get a win against a team like Savannah, you have to be happy,” Bowles said. “That was a game with pride on the line for these kids and to beat a team with that kind of rich tradition was good for them.”

Savannah is generally one of the toughest teams in the state and coach Tim Jordan will always have a roster with players that can fill it up in a hurry and challenge teams in the open court.

South Cobb (4-2) is no different. The Eagles relied on the speedy play of point guard
De’Marion Gordon and tough as nails senior Adam Callaway to help lead the charge. Gordon scored nine points and handed out six assists in the victory while Callaway had an effective 14 points.

“De’Marion hit the game winning shot the night before against Kennesaw Mountain and today he was just a player that made plays,” Bowles said. “He’s a special player. He shot some tough shots and made them.”

The Eagles are working senior wing Austin Kelly back into the rotation slowly. The Duke bound wide receiver injured his ankle in the last game of the football season. The 6-3 senior still provided a spark as he came off the bench to grab five rebounds, hand out three assists and block a couple of shots.

Alvin Jones, a 6-3 junior forward, was the junkyard dog for the Eagles as he did the dirty work inside and knocked down a number of midrange jumpers.

Savannah point guard Norris Rumph, a 6-1 junior, was injured on the first possession of the game, falling hard and injuring his back and neck. He sat out the first quarter because of the injury. His loss allowed South Cobb to go on a 18-2 lead to start the game.

Upon returning, Rumph helped close the gap and was the steady force in the backcourt in all phases. He finished with nine points, five rebounds and five assists.

While Rumph was the calm force, Savannah relied on leading scorer Kevin Williams. The 5-11 guard scored a game high 27 points (9-23 FG, 4-12 from deep) in the defeat.

South Cobb plays McEachern, a tough region battle, on Tuesday in Austell.