College bound

The class of 2008 is one of the deepest talent pools in recent memory. Georgia Hoops has compiled an exclusive and comprehensive list of college bound prospects from the class. If you know of any missing players, please let me know georgiahoops@gmail.com.

Division I

1. Al-Farouq Aminu, PF/SF, Norcross (Wake Forest)
2. Chris Singleton, SF/PF, Dunwoody (Florida State)
3. Howard Thompkins, PF, Wesleyan (Georgia)
4. Dequan Jones, SF, Wheeler (Miami)
5. Wesley Witherspoon, SF, Berkmar (Memphis)
6. Tony Woods, C, Rome (Wake Forest)
7. Tony Mitchell, SF, Swainsboro (Alabama)
8. Ray Willis, SG, Westlake (Oklahoma)
9. Ralph Sampson, III, C, Northview (Minnesota)
10. Delwan Graham, PF, Dunwoody (LSU)
11. Dustin Ware, PG, North Cobb Christian (Georgia)
12. Andre Young, PG, Deerfield-Windsor (Clemson)
13. Tanner Smith, SG, Wesleyan (Clemson)
14. Teondre Williams, SG, Meadowcreek (Oregon)
15. Cashmere Wright, PG, Urban Christian (Cincinnati)
16. Travis Leslie, SF, Columbia (Georgia)
17. Darius Morrow, C, Columbia (East Carolina)
18. Toby Veal, PF, Savannah Johnson (Colorado)
19. Darius Garrett, PF, McEachern (Richmond)
20. Ebuka Anyaorah, SG, North Gwinnett (Georgia)
21. James Fields, PG, Urban Chrsitian (Georgia State)
22. Steve Peterson, SF, Jordan (Morehead State)
23. Dennis Harris, PF/SF, Mundy’s Mill (LSU)
24. Kevin Murphy, SG, Creekside (Tennessee Tech)
25. Jerel Stephenson, SG, Glenn Hills (UNC Wilmington)
26. Pierre Jordan, PG, Dunwoody (Florida State)
27. Chris Reynolds, SG, Glenn Hills (Campbell)
28. Kenny Mitchell, PF/C, Columbia (Charleston Southern)
29. Matt Shaw, PF, North Cobb Christian (Lipscomb)
30. Parker Smith, SG, Chestatee (Tennessee State)
31. Joel Lamb, PF, Southwest Atlanta Christian (Charleston Southern)
32. Yaw Gyawu, SF, Parkview (Colgate)
33. Matt Sundberg, SG, Harrison (College of Charleston)
34. Terrence Hill, SG, Columbus Jordan (Morehead State)
35. Tyler McDaniel, PF/SF, Meadowcreek (Tennessee Tech)
36. Gideon Gamble, SF, Westlake (Winthrop)
37. Reggie Middleton, PG, Glenn Hills (Winthrop)
38. Kelvin Martin, SF, Cook County (Charleston Southern)
39. Ben Drayton, SG/PG, Camden County (Georgia Southern)
40. J.C. Ward, PF, Marietta (East Tennessee State)
41. Spencer Dixon, PG, Kennesaw Mountain (Kennesaw Mountain)
42. Chase Anderson, SG, Mill Creek (Air Force)
43. Yannick Crowder, PF, Redan (Florida A&M)
44. Donnell Webb, SG, Thomasville (Florida A&M)
45. Terrence Turner, PF, Fayette County (UNC Ashville)
46. Cecil Bent, C/PF, Swainsboro (Florida A&M)
47. P.J. Meyers, PG, T.W. Josey (Campbell)
48. Devon Carter, PF, Rome (Morehead State)
49. Shane Burrell, PF, Sound Doctrine (Alabama A&M)
50. Chris Edwards, SG, Westover (Jacksonville)
51. Kurtis Woods, Sound Doctrine (Jacksonville State)
52. Mike White, First Presbyterian Day (Bethune-Cookman)

Junior college

53. Bryan Bryant, SG, Dougherty (Okaloosa-Walton)
54. Dorian Smith, SG, Southwest Atlanta Christian (Alabama Southern CC)
55. Terrence Bowman, SG, Cairo (Okaloosa-Walton)
56. Dontavious Heard, SF, Troup (Truett-McConnell)
57. Michael Allen, PF/C, Mundy's Mill (Marion Military College)
58. Jimmy Gaskins, SG, Ware County (Florida Community College)
59. Brandon Hosley, PG/SG, Jonesboro (Truett-McConnell)
60. Travis Ellison, SF, Lithia Springs (Truett-McConnell)
61. Mark Yackon, SF, Chamblee (Middle Georgia College)
62. Marcus Benitiz, SF, Chamblee (Truett-McConnell)
63. Tyler Norman, White County (Truett-McConnell)
64. Austin Collins, Union County (Truett-McConnell)
65. Cody Coleman, Rabun County (Truett-McConnell)
66. Corey Forbes, Alexander (Middle Georgia College)
67. Matt Fields, Westlake (Middle Georgia College)
68. Antonio Bell, Jonesboro (South Georgia Tech)

Division II

69. Brandon O'Brien, PF/SF, Chamblee (Lincoln Memorial)
70. Brandon Armstrong, PG, Chamblee (Lincoln Memorial)
71. Jaron Dobbs, SF, Heritage (Clayton State)
72. Zach Rodenberry, PF, Salem (Harding University)
73. Mike Ross, Union County (Georgia College)
74. Ishmael John, Riverdale (West Georgia)

Prep school

75. Todd Salter, PG, Mundy’s Mill (Navy Prep)

2008 Wallace Prather Memorial Classic

The third annual Wallace Prather Memorial Classic will be held this weekend at Georgia Tech, featuring some of the top basketball travel teams in the Southeast.

Several of the top AAU teams from Georgia will be in attendance:

Atlanta Celtics
Atlanta Select
Coastal Crew Rebels
Georgia Blazers
Georgia Flight
Georgia Jaguars
Georgia Kings
Georgia Tornadoes
Hoop Planet
Lou Will Elite
Marietta Heat
Smyrna Stars
South Georgia Kings
Team Impact
Team Truth
Worldwide Renegades

17U team listings
17U pool listings
17U pool schedule
17U bracket
Easy to read bracket

All links are PDF files.

Georgia Hoops All-State teams

GEORGIAHOOPS

ALL-STATE TEAMS

Georgia Hoops is proud to announce our all-state teams, player of the year awards and other various post-season accolades. We spent the season traveling all corners of the state and saw more teams than any media outlet in the Peach State. The selections were not easy because of the depth of the talent in Georgia but we picked the best players that we saw, evaluated and covered over the last five months.

Norcross's Al-Farouq Aminu is the AAAAA, Senior and Player of the Year.

CLASS AAAAA

1^st team All-State

Al-Farouq Aminu, Norcross, Sr. (AAAAA Player of the Year)

Dequan Jones, Wheeler, Sr.

Lorenzo Brown, Centennial, Jr.

Wesley Witherspoon, Berkmar, Sr.

Kevin Williams, Savannah, Sr.

2^nd team All-State

Richard Howell, Wheeler, Jr.

Trae Golden, McEachern, Soph.

Stewart Clark, Hiram, Sr.

Kenny Hall, Redan, Jr.

Yaw Gyawu, Parkview, Sr.

CLASS AAAA

1^st team All-State

Travis Leslie, Columbia, Sr. (AAAA Player of the Year)

Ray Willis, Westlake, Sr.

Mfon Udofia, Miller Grove, Jr.

Chris Beasley, Pebblebrook, Sr.

Noel Johnson, Fayette County, Jr.

2^nd team All-State

Darius Morrow, Columbia, Sr.

Manny Atkins, Tucker, Jr.

Tony Woods, Rome, Sr.

Brandon Boykin, Fayette County, Sr.

Rashad Hassan, Riverdale, Sr.

CLASS AAA

1^st team All-State

Derrick Favors, South Atlanta, Jr. (AAA Player of the Year)

Chris Singleton, Dunwoody, Sr.

Delwan Graham, Dunwoody, Sr.

Jerel Stephenson, Glenn Hills, Sr.

Brian Bryant, Dougherty, Sr.

2^nd team All-State

Reggie Middleton, Glenn Hills, Sr.

Jordan Callahan, Blessed Trinity, Sr.

Demario Mayfield, Franklin County, Jr.

Hugh Robertson, Northeast Macon, Sr.

Jarvis Jones, Carver, Jr.

CLASS AA

1^st team All-State

Trey Thompkins, Wesleyan, Sr. (AA Player of the Year)

Jimmy Williams, Jr., East Laurens, Sr.

Tyshawn Good, Darlington, Jr.

Tony Mitchell, Swainsboro, Sr.

Harold Doby, Laney, Jr.

2^nd team All-State

Reshard Smtih, Dublin, Jr.

Dexter Ellington, Randolph-Clay, Sr.

Tanner Smith, Wesleyan, Sr.

Alex Elam, Lovett, Sr.

Wendell Williams, Appling County, Jr.

CLASS A

1^st team All-State

Kammeon Holsey, Hancock Central, Jr. (A Player of the Year)

David Buchanon, Portal, Sr.

Jalen Kendricks, Southwest Atlanta Christian, Soph.

Brandon Reed, Whitefield Academy, Jr.

Jamaal Day, Wilkinson County, Sr.

2^nd team All-State

Joel Lamb, Southwest Atlanta Christian, Sr.

Tray Pearce, Turner County, Jr.

Demetrius Ewing, Turner County, Sr.

Quintravis Benjamin, Terrell County, Sr.

Deondrick Pina, Schley County, Jr.

South Atlanta junior Derrick Favors is the state's top junior. (Pictures by Kipp Adams)

Georgia Hoops Player of the Year: Al-Farouq Aminu, Norcross

Senior of the year: Al-Farouq Aminu, Norcross

Seniors of the year

5A – Al-Farouq Aminu, Norcross, PF

4A – Travis Leslie, Columbia, SF

3A – Chris Singleton, Dunwoody, PF

2A – Howard Thompkins, Wesleyan, PF

A – David Buchanon, Portal, SG

Junior of the year: Derrick Favors, South Atlanta

Juniors of the year

5A – Lorenzo Brown, Centennial, SG

4A – Mfon Udofia, Miller Grove, SG/PG

3A – Derrick Favors, South Atlanta, PF/C

2A – Harold Doby, Laney, SF

A – Kammeon Holsey, PF

Sophomore of the year: Trae Golden, McEachern

Sophomores of the year

5A - Trae Golden, McEachern, PG/SG

4A – Aloys Cabel, Mays, PG

3A – Matthew Brabham, Central Macon, PG/SG

2A – Trent Wiedeman, GAC, PF

A – Jalen Kendrick, SACA, SF

Freshman of the year: Julian Royal, Milton

Riverfest - Friday night

For the Rivals.com national story, click here. The story is free.

Catching up

My email box has had some great subject lines over the last two weeks. Where did you go? Are you hiding from your picks? Did you move? Are you alive? You are just like Florida. Strong for so long and then completely disappeared in March. Are you dead?

Well, according to those that wear long white suits, I could have almost died. I missed the last week of the state tournament because I was in the hospital. All is better now. No worries. Thanks for those of you that checked in. Hopefully I'm back to full strength. I've never been this sick in my life.

So...that is where I've been.

My first trip back out on the road was spent at the Southern Shootout. Despite the crazy weather on Saturday that knocked out the lights at Clayton State and Jonesboro's Rec & Sport building, the games were solid. You can tell it is early in the AAU game and teams are starting to get their legs under them. (So was I that weekend.) The Worldwide Renegades won the 17 and under division.

This weekend I'm off to Columbus for Riverfest, which should be a pretty good event. I'll have coverage on our national page on Rivals.com Friday and Saturday. Here is the schedule for the weekend.

There will be a good sampling of teams at the event and I'm hoping to sneak a peek at teams in the 17, 16 and 15 and under divisions.

And in case you are wondering, I haven't forgot about the post-season awards. I really haven't. Those will come soon.

Two more off the board

Ebuka Anyaorah is headed to Colorado. (Picture by Kipp Adams)

North Gwinnett shooting guard Ebuka Anyaorah verbally committed to Colorado late Tuesday night. He joins Savannah Johnson forward Toby Veal in the Buffaloes' 2008 recruiting class.

Cook County senior Kelvin Martin, one of the state's biggest sleepers, verbally committed to Charleston Southern on Tuesday, too. The 6-5 athlete joins SACA forward Joel Lamb in the 2008 recruiting class. Also at CSU are former Gainesville star JaMarco Warren and Villa Rica star Tovi Bailey.

With the two seniors now off the recruiting board, the total count of college bound basketball players from Georgia is up to 45.

Join the Georgia Hoops Tourney Pick 'Em

Think you know a thing or two about the NCAA tournament? Join the Georgia Hoops tournament pick 'em challenge on Yahoo! Sports.

The group is password protected. The group number is 88850 and the password is peach. The password is case sensitive, too. Type it in just as you see it.

To sign up click HERE.

I hope to see a number of you in the challenge!

Freshman of the Year: Julian Royal

GEORGIAHOOPS
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR

JULIAN ROYAL, MILTON HIGH SCHOOL

The state of Georgia has a long line of talented big men that have paved the way for the stars of tomorrow.

Since the 2004 graduating class, guys like Dwight Howard, Josh Smith, Randolph Morris, Robert Dozier, Luke Nevill, Korvotney Barber, J.J. Hickson, Gani Lawal, Al-Farouq Aminu, Chris Singleton, Howard Thompkins, Derrick Favors and Kenny Hall have fine tuned their skills before making it big in the pro game, the college level and even on a national high school stage.

Milton High School freshman Julian Royal is next.

Royal, a 6-foot-7 power forward, is also the Georgia Hoops Freshman of the Year.

The humble rookie was the clear cut choice for the top player award for the class of 2011 after his sensational debut, posting better numbers than any player his age.

Royal got better as the season went along and gave a preview of good things to come this season under the direction of Milton head coach David Boyd.

"I think I did pretty well this year. It wasn't a bad start for my freshman year," Royal said. "I would have liked to have done a lot better, of course. I would have liked to have gone to state and gone that far."

Talented, yet humble, Royal doesn't come off as a player that knows he has arrived. In fact, the notoriety he has received doesn't seem to much meaning to the well-grounded player.

"It's nice to have because I've worked hard but it doesn't mean a whole lot in the grand scheme of things," Royal said.

What means a lot to him is getting better. That was evident just by watching him work this season. Posting a double-double was a normal occurrence. So was playing step-for-step with some of Atlanta's top players.

"He's playing against really good teams and great players. He knew that if he didn't come to play, he was going to get embarrassed. He played against D1 players all year," Boyd, the coach at Milton, said.

Boyd knows a little something about coaching high-level freshman. He coached Georgia Tech freshman and former McDonald's All-American Gani Lawal at Riverdale as a freshman.

Royal said he hears the comparisons from Boyd as well as from others that watched Lawal fine tune his craft at Norcross for his junior and senior year.

"I hear that all the time," Royal said. "[Coach Boyd] told me that when Gani first started that he wasn't that strong or that athletic so he just worked really hard. That was the thing that coach told me that I had to do – just develop that work ethic."

Boyd said he sees some similarities but notes their differences, too.

"They are about the same size in the ninth grade. Gani was probably a little stronger and a little bit better defender and rebounder. But Julian was a little bit more skilled offensively, ball-handler and shooter. He has a great touch. He can consistently shoot the three-pointer. That wasn't Gani's forte," Boyd said. "They are very similar. If Julian can combine Gani's strength and work ethic with his skill level, then you have something really special there."

Like Lawal, Royal is an engaging young man off the court. His leadership skills were the foundation of a decision Boyd made at the beginning of the year. He named Royal a team captain.

"You never have to worry about him getting into trouble or not doing his work or anything like that. He doesn't have a mean chip on his shoulder," Boyd said. "That's important to me and I think that is why he's going to be a great player because he's a great person and a great student from a great family. You put all of those things together and you're going to be good."

Royal is good. In fact, he is really good. He's so good that his decision to be named the Georgia Hoops Freshman of the Year was the easy choice of all of the classes this season.

The Royal File

Points: 18.3 per game

Rebounds: 11 per game

Blocks: 65

Field goal percentage: 48

Free throw percentage: 67

High points: 29 vs. Chattahoochee

High rebounds: 17 vs. Chattahoochee

Interested colleges: UAB, Duke, Florida, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Georgetown, North Carolina, Southern Cal, UCLA

Commitment catch-up

In back-to-back days, two Georgia juniors have given a verbal commitment to two different Southeastern Conference schools.

Redan forward Kenny Hall (pictured) unofficially visited Tennessee over the weekend and saw the Vols knock out Kentucky on Saturday. He committed shortly after his trip to Knoxville. The 6-foot-8 forward also considered Duke, Kentucky, UCLA and others.

A day later, North Clayton guard Andre Malone picked up the phone and called Auburn head coach Jeff Lebo to commit to the Tigers. The 6-foot-4 shooting guard will join Robert Chubb of McIntosh in Auburn's 2009 recruiting class. Both Malone and Chubb have played in the Georgia Hoops Fall Showcase.

Georgia has a verbal commitment from Franklin County star DeMario Mayfield.

Glenn Hills beats Washington Co. for fourth time

COLUMBUS, GA -- There were no secrets in this one. Playing in their fourth match-up against each other this season, Glenn Hills and Washington County stuck to their strengths and traded punches in the Elite Eight round of the AAA state tournament at Columbus State on Saturday.

Glenn Hills just happen to have the bigger punch in the end and moved onto the Final Four with a 56-44 win over its region foe.

Glenn Hills attacked the basket with round after round of drives to the rim from the team's guards and always seemed to have an answer when one was needed.

The Spartans won the first three prior meetings and head coach Richard Wallace said he was a little nervous about playing the Golden Hawks for a fourth time this season.

"I'll be honest, I didn't really want to play Washington County for a fourth time. That's a good basketball team," Wallace said. "The law of averages usually wins out. I'm glad it didn’t today because we are happy to move on."

The strength of Glenn Hills is the team's different looks that it can throw at a team. If Reggie Middleton isn't scoring, Chris Reynolds is. If Jerel Stephenson isn't scoring, Jihad McCloud is. The depth at the guard position is strong and all four players know how to play their respective positions.

Glenn Hills picked apart the Washington County defense and scored at the rim with relative ease.

"The type of zone they were running was like a match-up zone that spread it out and made us penetrate to the basket," Wallace said.

McCloud, a 6-foot unsigned senior, scored a team high 15 points. Middleton, a Winthrop signee, finished with 11 points while Stephenson, a UNC Wilmington signee, chipped in with 11 of his own and grabbed 10 rebounds. Reynolds, who signed with Campbell in the fall, scored eight in the win.

"This time of year it is about executing what you know what to do," Wallace said.

And that is just what Glenn Hills excels at.

Glenn Hills will play Hart County on March 7 at 5:30 p.m. at the Macon Centreplex.

East Laurens has little trouble with Long Co.

SAVANNAH, GA -- In case you were wondering, East Laurens is really, really good. The Falcons certainly proved that with a message-sending 79-53 win over Long County in the AA state tournament on Friday night.

East Laurens opened up the third quarter with a 20-4 run and never looked back. The Falcons played near flawless basketball in the second half, particularly in the third quarter and broke the game open with a 26-point lead. East Laurens led by seven at halftime.

The trio of senior Jimmy Williams, Jr., senior Ken Taylor and junior Terrance Lewis proved to be too much as they combined for 57 of East Laurens's 79 points.

"I told our guys that in order to beat a team like Long County, you can't led them get the ball and run and don't let them beat us on the offensive glass," East Laurens head coach Jimmy Williams, Sr. said. "Once we got that figured out, we set the tone on how we wanted to play. I was really happy with the way we got the ball and sent three to four guys at them as soon as we got the rebound."

Williams wasn't kidding. As soon as East Laurens grabbed the rebound, it took a blink of an eye to get across the halfcourt line and from there, the Falcons knew what to do with it.

Taylor scored 12 of his 18 points in the first quarter while Williams was involved in nearly every play throughout the game. If he wasn't powering to the basket both to the left and right to score, he was grabbing rebounds (he finished with 10), making a pass (he had five assits) or making a steal (he recorded five).

Lewis, a tight end on the football team, was relentless inside and seemed to score at will inside. The 6-foot-3 junior scored 18 points.

Long County could never find a rhythm in the game. The team's top player, Jimmy Bacon, scored 15 points and grabbed nine rebounds but fouled out late in the third quarter after receiving a technical foul.

Sophomore guard Justin Boyd took over the offensive responsibility in the fourth and finished with a team high 21 points.

East Laurens will play the winner of the Lovett-Coosa game on Thursday, March 6 at the Macon Centreplex at 8:30 p.m.

Dublin knocks out Randolph-Clay

SAVANNAH, GA -- St. Patrick's Day around these parts is a pretty wild scene. Leave it to Dublin High School to get the town ready for the annual celebration. The Irish beat Randolph-Clay 80-79 in one of the best games of the season in the Elite Eight round of the GHSA AA state tournament.

As soon as Dublin head coach Clint Thomas made his way off the court, he pulled an aluminum chair off the rack, wiped his sweaty brow with the towel off of his shoulder and let out a sigh of relief after the game.

He should. The game was wild. Dublin held a seven point lead with less than two minutes to play but Randolph-Clay, the only team with an undefeated record going into the state playoffs, scrapped back and cut the lead to as many as one with 59 seconds to play.

Randolph-Clay senior DeAndre Johnson hit a three-pointer with a hand in his face with 59 seconds to play, cutting the lead to 77-76 in favor of Dublin. A couple of possessions later on a clear path to the basket, he dribble the ball of his foot and gave the ball to Dublin.

Dublin junior guard Sherrard Brantley hit a pair of free throws with 17.5 to play, giving Dublin a four-point lead. The next possession, Randolph-Clay senior Dexter Ellington drilled a three-pointer with nine seconds to play, putting the Red Devils within one.

With five seconds to play, Dublin junior Chris Smith missed both free throws. Randolph-Clay had a moment to win the game with a last-second shot by Jason Martin that hit side rim as the buzzer sounded.

"That was a game of two well-conditioned teams out there," Thomas said. "It was one of those games where the kids just played their hearts out."

Rashard Smith (pictured) led Dublin with 24 points (5-16 FG, 14-21 FT) and seemed to come up with big play after big play throughout the game. His defensive pressure and free throw shooting for three quarters came up big for the Irish.

His cousin, Ben, helped Dublin claim a state title two years ago.

"There is something in that family that makes them step up," Thomas said. "He's the quarterback for the football team and he's just so under control."

Smith said he tried to keep his nerves in the tight situation.

"It was wild game and we just came out and stuck to our game plan," Smith said. "We stay composed when it mattered."

Brantley came up with key three-pointers in the fourth quarter that gave Dublin a comfortable seven point cushion for a good part of the fourth quarter. He finished with 18 points in the win. Ellington led the way with 30 points in the defeat.

The trip to the Final Four is Dublin's third in the last four years for the Irish. The AA powerhouse also improved to 5-0 at Savannah State.

Dublin will play the winner of Pace-Wesleyan game on March 6 at Macon Centreplex at 5:30 p.m.

More links from Tuesday night

Glenn Hills and Jordan was the best game outside of the Atlanta area on Tuesday night. By the sound of it, the match-up lived up to the billing. The trio of Reggie Middleton, Jerel Stephenson and Chris Reynolds scored 49 of their team's 52 points.

East Laurens was paced by senior Ken Taylor, who scored 30 points in a 70-64 win over Josey. Dublin won the battle at the foul line and used a big third quarter to knock off Swainsboro. For recaps for both games, click HERE.

Liberty County sophomore Rion Brown hit a three-pointer at the end of regulation against Shaw to force the game to overtime. It remained tight in overtime as Liberty County advances with a 55-54 win.

Columbus Carver continues to surge at the right time as the Tigers knocked off Westover 76-55. Junior Marcel Hawkins led Carver with 21 points and 13 rebounds.

Lost in the shuffle on Tuesday night was a major win by Northview at Marietta 71-61. Sounds like Jonesboro's 58-57 win over Statesboro was a hard-earned, tough battle on the road.

A crucial reversal of a call played a large role in Fayette County's four-point win at Thomas County Central on Tuesday night.

Rome snuck by Stone Mountain 58-57 thanks to on the ball pressure. Randolph-Clay remains perfect with a 73-64 win over Appling County.

Jimmy Bacon scored 32 points and grabbed 15 rebounds to help pace Long County over Laney in the AA bracket.

Pace Academy traveled to Macon for the second round and came away with a 61-54 win over Rutland. Washington County was led by UNC Greensboro bound forward Elhanan Bone, who scored 19 points in a 67-50 win over Central Macon.

In the AA bracket, Coosa won an 85-82 shootout over higher seeded Greater Atlanta Christian in Rome. Both Valdosta area teams - Lowndes and Valdosta - dropped games to Atlanta area teams as Douglass and Hiram move on in the tournament.

Terrell County moves on in the Class A playoffs with an 86-77 win over Chattahoochee County. Portal beat Wilcox County 69-49 thanks in large part to 25 points from David Buchanan.

Tuesday night game recaps

Too much Travis Leslie proved to be the case for Columbia as the AAAA powerhouse won a tight game against Pebblebrook on the road.

Savannah made the trek from the coast to Mundy's Mill for the second time this year. The first outcome was a two-point overtime loss. The second outcome had 30 different reasons why it was different.

Wesleyan won right from the tip against Macon County. Literally. Cherokee gave Miller Grove a fight but couldn't win out in the end. The dream season continues for Flowery Branch.

Guard play outweighs the size in Lithia Spring's win over Dacula. Berkmar gets past South Forsyth. The East Hall train continues to roll down the AAA tracks.

Norcross wins the sequel

What a crowd tonight at Norcross. The standing room only crowd saw a game that was better than the score related. I filed my story for our national page on Rivals.com. You can read it by clicking HERE.

Mercer head coach out at end of year

Mercer head coach Mark Slonaker will not be brought back next season as the men's basketball head coach. Mercer Athletic Director Bobby Pope announced the news on Tuesday.

Slonaker will coach the Bears in the final two games of the regular season and in the Atlantic Sun tournament.

Slonaker was at the helm for 11 years. I hate to see Slonaker go. He's a true gentleman in the game and a great advocate of Georgia basketball.

10 questions heading into the second round

Here we are in the Sweet 16. How about 10 questions that need answers going into Tuesday's slate of games?

1. What are my top 16 games for Tuesday night in order:

Jordan at Glenn Hills

Columbia at Pebblebrook

McEachern at Wheeler

Lithia Springs at Dacula

Appling County at Randolph Clay

Savannah at Mundy's Mill

Centennial at Norcross

Jonesboro at Statesboro

Blessed Trinity at Hart County

Westover at Carver-Columbus

Northview at Marietta

Franklin County at Dunwoody

Dublin at Swainsboro

Laney at Long County

Hancock Central at Gordon-Lee

2. Who are my winners from those games:

Glenn Hills

Pebblebrook

Wheeler

Lithia Springs

Appling County

Savannah

Norcross

Blessed Trinity

Westover

Marietta

Dunwoody

Swainsboro

Long County

Hancock Central

I was 65-15 in my first round picks in all classes. Someone buy me a cookie. Preferably the ones they sell at the Lithia Springs games.

3. Who has the biggest chance to pull off the upset on Tuesday night?

I like Pebblebrook to beat Columbia. Why? Simple, Bennie Gibbs has his team playing big-time basketball with speed in the backcourt and a great pressure defense from end to end. Chris Beasley, Pebblebrook's top player, is a scoring machine. Columbia received a scare in the region tournament from North Springs because of a press and key perimeter scoring. Guard play is the biggest question mark with Columbia right now. Plus, the game is at Pebblebrook.

Randolph Clay is 27-0. Appling County is 26-2. Between the two AA schools, that is 53 wins this season. Think this one will be exciting? I like Appling County in this one by a bucket. Appling's defense wins out over Randolph-Clay's offense. Should be a close one and a great one!

4. What team is surging at the right time?

Keep an eye on the winner of the Westover-Carver game. Both teams are playing as good as anyone in the AAA bracket right now. Westover may be sleeping in the AAA bracket. There is a strong chance that the team can make the march to Macon. They have that kind of talent, led by senior Chris Edwards.

Carver beat a good Mary Persons team easily and like a lot of teams, they are making a move at the right time.

5. What sleeper should the state get to know for the second round of the tournament?

How about Statesboro's Eric Ferguson? The 6-6 senior can shoot the three, athletic enough to play at the rim and his team is rolling at the right time. Statesboro is playing at home and the Blue Devils could very well upset the visiting Jonesboro squad.

6. What are the five best individual match-up on Tuesday?

Wheeler's Phil Taylor vs. McEachern's Trae Golden – The two sophomores should see some time against each other in the great Cobb County battle on Tuesday. In fact, both are in the final running for the Georgia Hoops Sophomore of the Year running. Taylor glues it all together at Wheeler and Golden is one of the most dynamic guards in the state.

Norcross's Al-Farouq Aminu vs. Centennial's Lorenzo Brown – Do any two players do more for their teams individually at such a high level than these two? They probably won't log too much time against each other but this is one of the best elite level match-ups all year long. Both players should have tremendous individual out puts.

Long County's Jimmy Bacon vs. Laney's Harold Doby – Looking for a sleeper match-up? Try this one on. Both are long 6-5 (or taller). Both are athletic. Both are inside-out kind of players. Both are under the radar juniors. Both are Division I prospects. Buckle up. This one could have some serious fireworks.

Franklin County's DeMario Mayfield vs. Dunwoody's Pierre Jordan – Mayfield, a junior committed to Georgia, is a tremendous scorer. Jordan, a Florida State signee, is a big time defender. Oil and water. Someone has to win out. Mayfield and his mates beat South Atlanta last year in the tournament. Can they play giant killer again?

Jordan's Terrence Hill vs. Glenn Hill's Jerel Stephenson – The two seniors are major parts to the puzzle for their respective teams. The winner of the game and the match-up could very well be in Macon next week playing for a state title. Hill has one. Stephenson wants one. It will be a battle of who wants it most.

7. What do I think about the higher seed home team?

Don't like it one bit. Think about the great opportunity for basketball on Tuesday. Four games at one venue (two girls and two boys games) has been the norm for so long. Now we are limited to back-to-back rounds of singular games.

This means less excitement, less fans, poorer officiating, less college coaches in town to see players and a lot of 10 p.m. phone calls to friends to find out scores.

I've heard through the grapevine that next year's state tournament might be worse with the Final Four being the only non neutral court. Two major thumbs down to the GHSA if that happens. And two major thumbs down to the local colleges with the big gyms that can't see the benefit of hosting a state tournament.

Here is my suggestion:

AAAAA – Georgia Tech/Georgia

AAAA – Georgia State/Savannah State

AAA – Kennesaw State/Georgia College

AA – Mercer/Albany State

A – Clayton State/Rome Forum

8. After one round, what bracket looks the strongest going into Tuesday?

I still like the AAA bracket the best with the AAAA bracket right behind it. The top half of the AAAAA lacks real star power and a team that is a state championship level type of club. Single A needs to call Brian Mcnamee for some human growth hormone. It's a little weak right now. That will change next round.

9. Where will Georgia Hoops be on Tuesday?

I'll be at Norcross. I missed last year's AAAAA state final because of a national assignment at another tournament. I can't miss this one this year. Someone save me a seat. And a parking spot.

10. What will be on the iPod?

For those of you that know me well, you know that I can't watch a game without a trio of things. My shot chart sheet, a pack of gum and my iPod. Everyone wants to know what I'm listening to, too. I'm going old school for Tuesday. I just put on Bill Withers "Greatest Hits" on the iPod. Don't interrupt me if I'm bobbing my head.

Enjoy the games on Tuesday!

More from the first round

Catching up on other games from Friday night, here is what I know...

The biggest surprise of the night state wide, in my opinion, was Savannah Johnson losing in double overtime to Lowndes, who went 12 of 14 in the second overtime to win 68-63. Down the road, Savannah High rolled through Tift County 68-46. Click HERE or HERE for a Savannah scoreboard.

Glenn Hills says the played with a little swagger. That was enough to push the top team in Augusta over Cairo. Now Glenn Hills moves on to play Jordan, in a terrific AAA match-up. Jordan held off Perry to advance.

Josey, Laney, Richmond Academy and Swainsboro all move on. Bainbridge beat Evans. Click HERE for the Augusta area box scores.

Shaw takes advantage in overtime to upset Northeast Macon. Looking for a sleeper in AA? Try Rutland's Jonathan Brooks. His 26 points and 17 rebounds helped his team beat Savannah Christian. No surprise here, Wilkinson County looks strong in the Class A bracket. Click HERE for the Macon area box scores.

For the second straight year, Central Macon beat Columbus Northside. Sounds like this one will take a while to overcome for the kids in Columbus.

Dougherty lost on a last second shot. Major upset!

Want a second round upset? Pebblebrook certainly has a chance to do that against Columbia on Tuesday. The Mableton school won big over NW Whitefield. When South Forsyth gets hot from the perimeter, they are tough, tough, tough. Campbell found that out. More on the Dacula-Tucker game. Watch out for Dacula!

First round wrap up

Since human cloning is completely out of the picture, I simply can't be at 37 places at a time tonight. I love the instant access age of the Internet.

Here's a rundown of what happened on the opening round of the state tournament.

Norcross and Wheeler won big. Surprised? I'll be honest, I am. Norcross jumped on the shoulders of McDonald's All-American Al-Farouq Aminu and picked up a 72-49 win over Harrison. Aminu scored a game-high 30 points in the win. Norcross plays host to Centennial(who won 75-72 over Meadowcreek) in a rematch of last year's AAAAA state championship game from last year on Tuesday. Should be a great one.

Wheeler beat the brakes off of Parkview 92-72 in the opening round of the tournament. Six players scored in double digits for Wheeler. The Wildcats will play host to McEachern on Tuesday in a battle of Cobb County teams.

The top two teams in the state had difficult draws in the first round of the tournament but had zero trouble picking up big wins. Think the two powers are aiming for the title game?

I am obviously eating some crow after Friday night. Why? I didn't think Norcross could make it to the Final Four. I thought Marietta would be a better team. Little did I know the Blue Devils will be without the services of senior DeAndre Cannon and junior point guard Chris Tanzy is still not 100 percent from an injury. Can I pull a mulligan?

Back to the games...

Dunwoody won big over Gainesville, thanks in large part to 21 points from junior Isaiah Grayson.

Ralph Sampson III recorded yet another triple double in a win over Central Gwinnett.

Greater Atlanta Christian looks strong in the AA bracket, winning easily over Dawson County.

Dacula took advantage of it's size and knocked out Tucker to move on in the AAAA bracket.

Through the grapevine...Savannah Johnson lost to Lowndes. Shocker! I thought they had enough to get to the Final Four. Whoops. Dougherty, another No. 1 seed, lost on a last-second shot. The Hiram-ML King game was a good one, from what I was told. Don't sleep on Hiram.

SCOREBOARD

East Hall likes no Favors

GAINESVILLE, GA -- If there was a thread to pull to unravel the stitching of South Atlanta, it was putting the state's top player Derrick Favors on the bench with foul trouble.

East Hall found the thread and yanked early. Favors was on the bench for the majority of the game and when he played, he was limited because of the penalties. East Hall exploited that and came away with a big 63-60 win in the AAA state tournament.

The Vikings (23-6) plugged away and held off a flurry of runs from South Atlanta. East Hall head coach Joe Dix said he liked the way his team responded when they were on the ropes early on.

"The kids showed a lot of heart, guts and poise and they found a way to win," Dix said. "They hunt in there and found a way to win. That's what these kids do."

East Hall let South Atlanta stay in the game, making just one of 11 free throw attempts under five minutes to play. Senior Dedric Ware came up with a big block on a Quentin Trent three-point attempt with less than 10 seconds to play, which would have given the Hornets the lead and possible win.

Sophomore Joshten Hopkins came off the bench to hit four three-pointers and 14 points for East Hall.

South Atlanta opened the game up with a 14-2 run, sparked with a big two-handed reverse alley-oop dunk from Favors right out of the tip. Favors picked up his second foul at the 5:26 mark in the first quarter and East Hall responded with a run of its own, going 15-4 with Favors on the bench.

"We talked openly about [getting Favors] into foul trouble," Dix said. "We knew that they are a very different team without him in there."

That is an understatement, says South Atlanta's head coach Michael Reddick.

"The extra punch they had was Derrick sitting on the bench," Reddick said. "He changes the game in every way imaginable. Without him in there, we had to do things a lot differently."

Senior Ken Wise scored 10 of his team high 19 points in the first half and did his best work at the rim as Favors sat and watched.

South Atlanta, the No. 7 team in the state regardless of class in the Georgia Hoops Power Poll, finishes the year at 27-3. East Hall moves on to play the winner of the Cartersville-Stephens County game on Tuesday night.