1:00pm
Final: Carver (AL) 48, North Cobb (38)
Player of the Game: Jeremy Johnson, Carver 16 points
After playing a game in Alabama on Friday night, Carver loaded into a bus and jumped on the interstate to come to the Hilton Invitational. Their reward for the late night trip was a match-up against North Cobb, one of the top teams in Georgia.
“We got in around 3 in the morning last night and I think it showed in the first half,” Carver head coach James Jackson said. “We were something like seven of 23 in the first half so I asked the guys to just get me one bucket. Just one bucket! I told them we could sleep and eat on the way home. All we had to do was get this win under us.”
And they did.
Thanks to 12 points and a couple of threes in the fourth quarter from Auburn bound quarterback Jeremy Johnson and Carver opened up the game late in the fourth quarter and went on to win 48-38. Johnson finished with a game high 16 points.
“He was down on himself at half,” Jackson said of his senior who was held scoreless. “He’s the kind of kid that won’t take shots if it is going to hurt the team but we told him that we needed those buckets.”
Johnson got ‘em. So did junior forward Demetrius Houston, who added 13.
North Cobb was led by Jordan Neff’s 12 points and had 11 from Lee Moore.
2:30pm
Miller Grove HS (GA) 104, Memphis East HS (TN) 56
Player of the Game: Kyre’ Hamer, Miller Grove 40 points
Miller Grove struggled with one thing on Saturday afternoon against Memphis East – missing shots. The Wolverines won 104-56 thanks to incredible shooting from, well, everybody.
Unsigned senior guard Kyre’ Hamer scored a career high 40 points on 16-19 shooting. He also hit seven three-pointers.
The Wolverines missed just five shots in the first half and had 89 points on the scoreboard after three quarters of play. It was total domination for the four-time state champs. Hamer didn’t do it alone. He had help from Keith Pickney (22 points), Alterique Gilbert (17 points) and Earl Bryant (10 points).
“That was our best game of the year end-to-end,” Miller Grove head coach Sharman White said. “We won last night but we just weren’t satisfied with how we won. We needed to pick it up defensively.”
Hamer deflected any talk about his personal outcome in this game and highlighted the team’s defensive effort.
“They got the brunt end of what we didn’t do last night against M.L. King,” Hamer said. “We just weren’t satisfied with how we played. Today, though, was what we are capable of doing.”
The defense generated the Miller Grove offense and crisp Wolverine passing kept the shooters in plain view of the basket.
Memphis East was paced by future University of Memphis forward Nick King, who had 15 points.
4:00pm
Greater Atlanta Christian HS (GA) 81, ML King HS (GA) 56
Player of the Game: Isaiah Wilkins, GAC 16 points
Collin Swinton scored 17 of his 19 points in the first half to pace Greater Atlanta Christian 81-48 over ML King on Saturday afternoon at the Hilton Invitational.
GAC was originally scheduled to play Olympic from Charlotte but Mecklenburg County schools cancelled school because of inclement weather, which kept the North Carolina school land locked. ML King was added last minute to the Hilton Invitational and accepted the challenge of playing GAC.
For Eddie Martin, said he was excited about the prospects of playing an up-tempo team in ML King. So was Swinton, the GAC point guard. Playing a team on short notice meant time for a quick inspection as to the type of team the Spartans were, Swinton said.
“We knew that we just had to come out and play no matter who it was,” Swinton said. “We got away with a win so that’s what matters. I think we played really well and then we slacked off in the fourth quarter. I’m not sure if we thought the game was over or what.”
Nevertheless, the win was convincing. Junior forward Isaiah Wilkins added 16 points, 10 rebounds and nine blocks in the win. He played very well in a match-up of fellow junior forward Greg King.
5:30pm
Eagle’s Landing (GA) 67, Flora McDonald (NC) 55
Player of the Game: Isaiah Dennis, 20 points
Isaiah Dennis and Eric Wortham each scored 20 points for Eagle’s Landing to pace the War Eagles past Flora McDonald 67-55 on Saturday evening.
In a fast-paced game full of athletics Division I players, fans were treated to a game played above the rim and in transition. The game was a nice test for Eagle’s Landing as the team prepares for the rugged post-season in the Peach State.
“After our excruciating December schedule we were pretty prepared for a game like this,” Eagle’s Landing head coach Clay Crump said. “We had to do a better job of executing and rebounding. I thought the adjustments we made as a group on both sides of the ball really helped us.”
Eagle’s Landing was up by a point at the halftime break but broke it open in the fourth thanks to Dennis, Wortham and the team’s attention on the glass against a big Flora McDonald frontline.
7:00pm
Norcross (GA) 68, Dematha (MD) 67
Player of the Game: Brandon Goodwin, 21 points
(via Score Atlanta) The hosts led throughout and staved off a late charge by DeMatha. A 51-35 lead at the end of three melted away as DeMatha senior point guard Jarius Lyles, a Virginia Commonwealth commitment, scored 21 in the final period to make things interesting.
Lyles finished with a game-high 36 points while senior guard Brandon Goodwin led Norcross with 21. At the half, Norcross held a 31-25 lead as Goodwin and Lyles each had 11 points.
8:30pm
Christ School (NC), Wheeler (GA) 52
Player of the Game: Alec Wnak, 16 points
(Via Score Atlanta) Wheeler led 28-25 at the half, but Christ School rode a 16-10 edge in the third quarter to gain a lead it would not relinquish.
The Greenies expanded their lead to 46-38 with five minutes left in the game, but Wheeler’s Trevin Steede hit two consecutive 3-pointers to bring the Wildcats to within two. Christ School ended the game on a 14-8 run.
