Thursday March 28th, 2024 5:55PM
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Boys basketball: 7-3A taking shape as NHall, White County, Lumpkin, Bluff take wins; Branch, GHS, Johnson all fall

By AccessWDUN Staff

GAINESVILLE  — North Hall used a huge first quarter run to grab the lead en route to a 76-30 win over Gilmer at Lynn Cottrell Court on Friday.

It was a battle of two of three teams tied atop the Region 7-3A standings near the midway point. 

North Hall (13-3, 5-1 Region 7-3A) exploded for a big 27-6 lead at the end of first quarter and never let the Bobcats (11-4, 4-2 Region 7-3A) back in the game.

Sam Gailey paced the Trojans with 21 points. Robert Terry added 13 points for North Hall.

The win Trojans for the Trojans kept them tied atop the standings with White County, which beat East Forsyth 54-44 on Friday

Next up for the Trojans will be East Forsyth on Tuesday on the road in another big region showdown.


WHITE COUNTY 54,
EAST FORSYTH 44

The Warriors survived a wild back-and-forth affair to pull away for a huge region win at home.

The win kept White County (9-7, 5-1 Region 7-3A) tied with North Hall atop the standings. The loss for the Broncos (6-10, 2-4 Region 7-3A) dropped them into a tie for fifth place with Dawson County.

But East Forsyth opened the game strong taking a 15-10 lead after the first quarter. The Warriors answered with a 17-6 second quarter to take a 27-21 halftime lead.

The Broncos responded back in the third quarter with a 15-9 run to tie the game at 36 heading into the fourth quarter. White County used an 18-8 burst over the final eight minutes to pull away for the win.

Jaden Yeh paced White County with 18 points. Silas Mulligan had 16 and Kenny Simpson 10 for the Warriors.

Doug Hyams led East Forsyth with 12 points.

White County next will play host to Lumpkin County on Tuesday. East Forsyth will entertain North Hall on Tuesday in a pair of Region 7-3A matchups.


CHEROKEE BLUFF 74,
DAWSON COUNTY 63

The Bears used a big first half to grab the lead and then held off a late Tigers charge to pull into a tie for fifth place in the Region 7-3A standings with the victory.

Bluff (6-9, 2-4 Region 7-3A) opened the game with a 26-13 run and extended its lead to 40-25 by halftime. The Tigers (3-14, 2-4 Region 7-3A) chipped away in the second half closing to within 50-42. But the Bears held on in a wild fourth quarter where the two teams combined for 45 points.

Cade Simmons led Bluff with 17 points, 11 coming in the second half. Justyce Sadler poured in 15, 9 in the fourth quarter, Carlos Marlowe finished with 12, and Bryce Horton 10 for the Bears.

Caden Reed and Trey Harvey each had 16 points to lead Dawson County. Lane Perry added 13 for the Tigers.

Both teams face big region road games on Tuesday. The Bears head to Gilmer while the Tigers travel to West Hall.


LUMPKIN COUNTY 64,
WEST HALL 60 OT

The Indians won their second consecutive close game, holding off the Spartans in a wild overtime finish at home.

Lumpkin County (6-10, 3-3 Region 7-3A) led by eight at halftime and by six heading into the fourth quarter. But West Hall (4-11, 1-5 Region 7-3A) chipped away until getting a pair of free throws from Xavier Felix with 2.6 seconds left to send the game into overtime tied at 55.

The Spartans opened the extra frame with a Felix 3-pointer to grab the lead at 58-55. But the Indians scored five consecutive points to reclaim the lead but eventually the Spartans caught them at 60.

From there, Hunter Cooper hit four free throws in a row down the stretch to close out the game. Cooper hit the first two free throws, then after a missed a shot by West Hall, Cooper went back to the line and hit two more to seal it.

Jones Harris had another big game for the Indians pouring in 21 points and pulling down 4 rebounds. Cal Faulkner added 17 points, 6rebounds, and dished out 3 assists. Faulkner, a freshman, has been in breakout mode averaging 17.6 points/game, 6 rebounds/game, and 3.6 assists/game over his last three games.

Cooper finished with 12 points and Preston Cox had 6 points and 8 rebounds for Lumpkin County.

Felix finished with 13 points for West Hall. Calvin Norman and Stephen Clark each had 11 points and Andrew Malin and Isaiah Holder both had 10 for the Spartans.

Lumpkin won it at the free throw line going 20-of-26 for the game. West Hall was just 10-of-17 from the line.


SOUTH FORSYTH 68,
GAINESVILLE 57

It was a close one until South Forsyth's Baylor Hicks took over in the fourth quarter. 

Hicks scored 14 of his 19 points in the final period to help the War Eagles (9-6, 3-2 Region 6-7A) beat Gainesville in the first of two region battles this season. 

The game was a back-and-forth contest until the fourth quarter. The Red Elephants (4-11, 0-4 Region 6-7A) led, 16-12, after the first eight minutes, and trailed by one-point, 30-29, at the half. 

Even in the third quarter, the two foes traded baskets, with South Forsyth grabbing a three-point lead, 43-40, at the end of the quarter. 

It was the fourth quarter that went South for the Red Elephants. Hicks scored on War Eagles' first seven of eight trips downs the floor in the final period to push the lead up, 62-46, with 3:22 left. 

Gainesville had no answer to South Forsyth's zone defense down the stretch. 

Charlie Reisman led Gainesville with 19 points. Dre Raven and Julius Jackson added 8 each. 


MADISON COUNTY 65,
FLOWERY BRANCH 44

The Red Raiders opened the game with a 19-9 run and outscored the Falcons 34-23 in the second half to run away with a big Region 8-4A win at home.

The Falcons (10-7, 2-3 Region 8-4A) dropped into fifth place in the region standings with the loss. Madison County (12-2, 3-1 Region 8-4A) jumped into sole possession of second place with the victory.

Flowery Branch was led by Tyleek Worth, who missed most of the Lanierland Tournament, who had 14 points. Jeremiah Ware added 12 for the Falcons. However, Trey Shaw and Jackson Owens were held to just 7 points combined by the Red Raiders defense.

Jay Carruth paced four Madison County scorers in double figures with 16 points, 12 in the second half. Peyton Smith had 15 points, Mason Smith 13, and Chris Rhodes 10 points for the Red Raiders.

Branch faces another tough region test on Tuesday playing host to Cedar Shoals.


LOGANVILLE 75 
JOHNSON 16

The Knights were forced to play with five players out due to sickness in a Region 8-5A contest at The Dungeon.

Johnson was held to just 1 free throw in the first quarter as the Red Devils built a 17-1 lead. Loganville took a 30-6 advantage at halftime and led 57-14 heading into the fourth quarter.

Chris Dorbor led Loganville with 10 points.

Johnson was led by Bryce Parson with 7 points and Jake Shaw had 6 for the Knights.

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