TIGER, Ga. — Rabun County rallied from a 21-6 first half deficit to beat Walhalla (SC), 71-64, Friday night at home.
Behind Jayton Henry, who poured in 24 points to go with 4 rebounds and 3 blocks, the Wildcats (4-4) chipped away and pulled within 33-28 by halftime. Walhalla, however, extended its lead to 49-42 heading into the fourth.
Rabun County exploded over the final eight minutes outscoring Walhalla 29-15 to eventually pull away for the win.
Willie Goodwyn had a double-double with 10 points and 14 rebounds and Cooper Welch added 12 points for Rabun County. Giles Jarret and Jack Hood each had 9 points and Huey Blalock finished with 7 points, 8 rebounds, and 9 assists for the Wildcats.
BANKS COUNTY 63,
COMMERCE 58
The Leopards also used a big fourth quarter to rally for a win on Friday.
Banks County (9-2) trailed by 10 points going into the fourth quarter and was down by six with just over two minutes left.
Mason Adams poured in 28 points to lead the Leopards. Hunter Youngblood finished with 13 points and Aaron Scott had 10 points for Banks County.
UNION COUNTY 62,
FANNIN COUNTY 42
The Panthers (5-4) knocked off their rivals at home on Friday.
Houston Henry led the way for Union County with 21 points. Eli Underwood had 13 points, Cade Dockrey 8, and Jude Ellis and Maddox Young both finished with 7 points for the Panthers.
CHESTATEE 61,
EAST FORSYTH 60
Chestatee took a thrilling victory over East Forsyth on Friday in a crucial Region 8-4A game for both teams.
The win for the War Eagles (6-2, 3-1 Region 8-4A) kept them in pace with Cherokee Bluff atop the subregion standings.
Chestatee’s Colton Wilbanks poured in 22 points, 16 in the second half, as they rallied from a 29-27 halftime deficit.
East Forsyth (4-7, 1-4 Region 8-4A) led 16-9 after the first quarter and took a slim lead into the break. But Chestatee used a 19-16 third quarter to grab the lead and held on down the stretch.
Jarvis Weaver had 14 points and Hugh Pruitt and Eli Parlier each scored 9 for Chestatee.
Davey Hyams poured in 16 points to pace the Broncos. Cannon Hunter had 12 points, Bryce Bracco 11 points, including three 3 pointers, and Matthew Rouse 10 points for East Forsyth.
CHEROKEE BLUFF 94,
EAST HALL 58
The Bears won their fourth straight game with a stunning blowout of the Vikings on Friday in Region 8-4A action at the Bluff gym.
Bluff (6-2, 3-1 Region 8-4A) opened with a 20-10 first quarter and then the offense exploded for 61 points in the second and third quarter. They took a 48-26 lead into halftime and eventually ran out to an 81-45 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
The win kept the Bears tied with Chestatee atop the subregion standings. East Hall dropped to 1-9, 0-4 in the subregion with the loss.
Logan Holmes led the Bears with a game-high 19 points, including four 3-pointers. Carlos Marlowe added 17 points and Bryce Horton had 11, including three 3-pointers, for Cherokee Bluff.
Freshman Chasen Jones led East Hall with 17 points. Sophomore Yair Furtado had 12 points, and freshman JaMarcus Harrison 9 for the Vikings. Senior Levi Holtzclaw was held to just 2 points on a pair of free throws and no field goals for the game for East Hall.
WHITE COUNTY 72,
GILMER 66
The Warriors remained unbeaten and atop the Region 7-3A standings with a huge win over the Bobcats at home on Friday.
They also survived a 32-point effort from the Bobcats’ 7-foot sophomore Jackson McVey.
The win kept White County (6-6, 3-0 Region 7-3A) a game ahead of West Hall and Pickens in the standings
It was a nip-and-tuck battle most of the way. The game was tied at 18 after the opening quarter and the Warriors took a 36-32 lead into halftime. They extended the lead to 53-45 heading into the fourth quarter before holding off a furious Gilmer (7-3, 2-2 Region 7-3A) rally.
McVey scored 12 of his 32 in the fourth quarter. Ryder Wofford had 18 points and JD Taylor 10 as the Bobcats only got 6 points from the rest of the bench.
White County was paced by Braxton Anderson with 15 points, 12 coming in the fourth quarter to help preserve the win. Jaden Yeh had 13 points and Tripp Nix 12 for the Warriors.
PICKENS 65,
LUMPKIN COUNTY 48
Lumpkin County is still looking for its first Region 7-3A win after a loss on the road Friday night.
The Indians (1-9, 0-4 Region 7-3A) trailed 15-9 after the opening period but the Dragons eventually took a 30-19 lead into halftime. Pickens extended the lead to 44-32 heading into the fourth quarter.
Pickens (5-3, 2-1 Region 7-3A) remained one game behind White County in the regions standings with the win.
Cal Faulkner led Lumpkin County with 15 points. Stephen Sherrill had 12 points and Jack Carroll finished with 7 points and 4 rebounds for the Indians.
