OAKWOOD -- For all the talk of the offensive firepower of Class AAAA No. 1 and defending state champion Jonesboro, it was the Cardinals defense that was the talk of the Johnson gym Thursday night.
Jonesboro, and Kenneth Qualls in particular, shut down Ty Cockfield and a potent Knights offense forcing 26 turnovers to help the Cardinals pull away in the fourth quarter for a 50-35 win in the quarterfinals of the Class AAAA playoffs.
Johnson (29-1) trailed just 37-30 entering the final period but managed just one Ladarius Odem free throw over the first seven minutes of the fourth quarter while committing six turnovers as Jonesboro used a 10-0 run to put the game away. The Knights did score the final four points, including a highlight-reel dunk by Cockfield over the Cardinals' Austin Donaldson, but the game was out of reach by that point.
"They are even better in person than on film," Johnson coach Jeff Steele said of the Cardinals. "But we helped them out a lot. You can't have that many turnovers and beat a team that good. Their defense was outstanding."
Cockfield, who came in averaging 28 points a game, was held to 11 points and just one 3-pointer as Qualls shadowed the senior guard like a ghost. Johnson scored just 13 second half points, its second-lowest output for a half all season.
Offensive rebounds also were a problem as the smaller Knights could not keep Jonesboro (30-1) off the boards. The Cardinals had 24 offensive rebounds that led to 20 points.
"They killed us on the boards and you won't beat anyone giving up that many offensive rebounds," Steele said. "We just couldn't get a rhythm on offense in the second half but they had a lot to do with that."
Cockfield said the Knights' slash-and-attack offense was thwarted throughout the game by the length and quickness of the Cardinals.
"They did a lot of face-guarding and we just never could do what we wanted to do," he said. "It was tough to drive inside. They played good defense."
Despite the loss, Cockfield said he had some strong memories of one of the best seasons ever for any Johnson team. And a few regrets.
"Getting to play with my brothers. We're like a family. I'll always remember that," he said. "The season as a whole feels good. But in the end we didn't get where we wanted. We wanted a ring and that hurts. But (Jonesboro) was better than us tonight."
Still, with all that going against them, the Knights were within striking distance heading into the fourth quarter.
Johnson went toe-to-toe with the Cardinals in the first quarter. Senior Roderick English, who finished with 13 points to lead Johnson, gave them a 2-0 lead to open the game and DeMonte Nicholson made it 4-2 on a driving floater. But Jonesboro exploded for an 8-0 run in just over two minutes, capped by six consecutive points by Tracy Hector Jr. for a 10-4 lead.
The Knights, however, showed they could put runs together. They went on a 9-0 spurt over the next three minutes, with English hitting a 3-pointer among five points for a 13-10 lead. Jonesboro tied the game at 13 with a long 3-pointer from Deantre Mack but Johnson would take a 15-13 lead into the second quarter on a running basket by Cockfield at the buzzer.
It would be the last lead of the game for Johnson.
The second quarter was all Jonesboro. The Cardinals used their length on defense to force eight Johnson turnovers in the period and opened the quarter with a 10-0 run, capped by Mack's second 3-pointer of the half.
The Knights pulled within 25-20 on a Cockfield 3-pointer with 1:25 left in the half and a pair of Michael Garcia free throws with 2 seconds left pulled them within 27-22 at halftime.
Both defenses set the tone. Jonesboro forced 14 Johnson turnovers turning them into 10 points in the first half. The Knights forced seven Cardinals turnovers but could only convert them into four points.
The two defenses also combined to force more than a dozen charging or blocking fouls in the first half.
In the the third quarter Johnson pulled within 30-26 on a pair of English baskets but that's as close as they could get. Jonesboro closed out the quarter with a 7-4 run as they forced four consecutive Johnson turnovers to keep the score at 37-30.
Jonesboro used a 10-0 run to open the fourth quarter to take control with four different players scoring as they used their height advantage to keep possessions alive. The Cardinals took their biggest lead, 50-31, with 1:03 left.
Hector Jr. and Mack each finished with 15 points to lead Jonesboro. Walker, the team's leading scorer, was held to just eight points.
Steele had some criticsm for the playoffs system but said everyone has to play under the same rules.
"There is no way for two teams this good to have to play in the third round. This was a state-title caliber game," Steele said. "They should try to come up with a better way to seed the teams. But we knew that coming in so you can't worry about that.
"But I can't say enough about these kids. They're like my own children. I hurt for them right now but they had a tremendous season and nobody can take that away from them."
NOTES: Jonesboro came into the game with an average margin of victory of 32.1 points. ... Cockfield and English came into the game having combined for 105 3-pointers on the season and both had attempted over 210 free throws. ... They were held to just two total 3-pointers and zero free throw attempts by Jonesboro.
PREP BASKETBALL STATE QUARTERFINALS
RESULTS
THURSDAY
-- Jonesboro boys 50, Johnson 35 (Class AAAA)
-- Laney boys 92, East Hall 67 (Class AAA)
TUESDAY'S RESULTS
-- Buford girls 59, St. Pius 55 (Class AAAA)
-- Laney girls 70, Dawson County 64 (Class AAA)
-- Mays girls 47, Gainesville 25 (Class AAAAA)
-- Terrell County girls 45, Commerce 31 (Class A public)
REMAINING SCHEDULE
FRIDAY
-- East Hall girls at Calhoun (Class AAA) 4 p.m.
Thursday
January 30th, 2025
3:39AM
