GHS boys fall short in title bid to Collins Hill

GAINESVILLE -- Collins Hill junior Johncarlos Reyes showed why it's good to be tall.

The 6-foot-8 center blocked eight shots, including four in the second overtime, and altered at least a dozen more in helping the Eagles hold off host Gainesville 78-74 in double overtime Saturday night in the finals of Big Red Shootout.

Reyes blocked the first two Red Elephant shots to start the second overtime and then poured in eight points down the stretch against the much smaller Elephants. His inside dominance complimented the slashing play of junior Devin Mitchell, who torched the Gainesville defense for 41 points from a variety of spots.

Gainesville coach Todd Cottrell said they knew it would be a challenge.

"Our goal was to hold (Mitchell) to 35 and if we do that we win the game," he said. "Reyes is tough but I thought we played well and held our own."

Gainesville had chances to win the game. They let a seven-point lead in the fourth quarter slip away but watched Shaquan Cantrell drain a 3-pointer to tie the game at 59 with 12 seconds left in regulation. The defense did not let the Eagles get a shot off to win it in the final five seconds.

In the first overtime Cantrell hit a jumper to tie the game at 64 and the defense forced a Collins HIll turnover with 7.5 seconds left. But the Elephants could not get a shot off at the end.

In the second overtime, Reyes swatted away the Elephants first two shots and scored six straight points to give the Eagles a 72-67 lead with 1:05 left. Gainesville cut the lead to 76-74 with 12 seconds left on a Caleb Hayman basket but Mitchell sank two free throws with 7.3 seconds left to ice the game.

But the Elephants showed they can stand toe-to-toe with taller teams. They outrebounded the Eagles 35-22, led by Hayman, who pulled down 11 rebounds. More than half of their points came from within 10 feet as they went after Reyes early in the game.

"I thought we did a good job for the most part inside," Cottrell said. "The kids competed. I like the way we're playing right now."

Cantrell led Gainesville with 23 points. Reed Tipton had nine points on three 3-pointers and Jikeese Ruff also had nine points for the Elephants.

The difference may have been at the free throw line. Gainesville was just 7-of-14 for the game while the Eagles were 20-of-31 for the game.

The first half was a tight affair with neither team leading by more than four points. Collins HIll jumped out to a quick 9-3 lead but Gainesville responded with a 10-0 run, powered by a pair of 3-pointers from Tipton, and would lead 13-11 after the first quarter.

The Eagles answered right back, however, using a 6-0 run on four straight points by Mitchell for a 15-13 lead. The Elephants answered with a 6-0 run of their own on a basket by Luke Maddox and a nifty assist by Maddox to McKay Aiken for a 19-15 lead.

Collins Hill would rally to tie the game at 23 going into halftime.

Gainesville came out strong to start the second half using a 19-10 run to open up a 42-33 lead. But the Eagles battled back to tie the game at 54 and then take the lead, 56-54, on a basket by Mitchell with 1:11 left in regulation.

Cantrell would tie the game at 56 on a fastbreak dunk but Mitchell scored three consecutive points to give the Eagles a 59-56 lead with 24 seconds left.

Mitchell was named the tournament MVP. Darius Joell of Collins Hill, Gainesville's Shaquan Cantrell, Malik Abraham of Parkview, and Chattahoochee teammates Markus Terry and Trey Archambeau were named to the All-Tournament team.

In the boys consolation round, Chattahoochee finished third with a 59-48 win over Parkview. Franklin County finished fifth after knocking off Dunwoody, and Johnson was seventh after beating Douglass.

GIRLS FINAL
PARKVIEW 58
CHATTAHOOCHEE 35

The Lady Panthers opened the game with an 18-2 run and then cruised to the win to capture the girls championship.

Parkview (13-0) never trailed and used its quickness to force seven Chattahoochee turnovers in the opening quarter for a 23-3 lead. The Lady Panthers would take a 33-12 lead into halftime.

The Lady Cougars (8-3) found their offense in the third quarter using a 14-7 run to pull within 40-26 midway through the period. But they would not get closer as Parkview closed out the quarter with a 10-4 run to put the game away.

Parkview showed why it is one of the best teams in Georgia, and ranked nationally. The Lady Panthers won all three games by an average of 50 points. But despite sporting five players 5-feet-11 or taller, it is the smallest Lady Panther that makes the engine go.

Senior Marissa Mandeldove, just 5-foot-4, was named tournament MVP. Her defense and table-setting broke down defenses all weekend.

"This is a great group and they feel very confident when they go out on the court," Parkview girls coach Tony Watkins said. "Marissa is the one that really makes things happen for us. When she's right, we're right. She played well all three games."

Against Chattahoochee, Parkview was led by Vickie Harris with 15 points. Bernice McGriff added eight for the Lady Panthers.

Chattahoochee was paced by Amari Carter and Cassidy Gaillard with 12 points apiece.

The All-tournament was dominated by Parkview. Mia Marshall, Genesis Perrymond, and Harris all were named for the Lady Panthers. Chattahoochee's Erin Morrow, Jackson County's Victoria Fontana, and Franklin County's Autumn Brooks also were named to the team.

In the girls consolation bracket, Franklin County finished third after holding off fellow Region 8-AAA foe Jackson County 45-41. The Lady Lions hit two free throws with 2.2 seconds left to ice the game.

Host Gainesville finished fifth after beating Class AAAAAA Dacula 45-31 behind 14 points from Anna Walker. Kaysey Smith added nine points for the Lady Elephants (6-5).

First-year school Cambridge finished seventh after beating Johnson for its first-ever win in program history.