Boys basketball playoffs: North Hall stuns Madison; Gainesville punches state playoff ticket; Bluff, EHall fall in 8-4A tourney

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The North Hall boys got over the hump before time ran out in the most important game of the year Tuesday night at Cherokee Bluff. 

The Trojans shocked No. 6-ranked Madison County, 79-66, in the quarterfinals of the Region 8-4A tournament to advance to the state tournament for the first time in two seasons and a spot in the region semifinals. 

READ MORE: Girls basketball playoffs: Rabun advances to 8-A D1 finals; Lady Warriors, GHS, Dawson Co. all advance to state playoffs

North Hall (13-14) will play South No. 1 seed North Oconee in the semifinals on Thursday at North Oconee. 

“They're a resilient bunch. They've done this all year,” North Hall coach Jarvis Davenport said. “You know, just some games, we would run out of time before we could actually get over that hump. Every day, we just say never say die, no matter what happens. We’re learning every day, and the more comfortable they get, the better they play.” 

The win was the first for the Trojans over a South sub-region foe this season. 

“This is a gauntlet of a region,” Davenport said. “We beat nobody on that side in crossover games. Last year, Madison put them out right here in this gym, and we were in the same locker room and the seniors didn't want that to happen again. So, we just banded together and played for each other, and you know, North Hall came out on top tonight.”

Cole Hulsey poured in 25 points, including 14 of 18 from the foul line, to lead North Hall. He also scored 16 of his 25 points in the third quarter, helping the Trojans to a 16-point lead. 

After charging to a 20-15 lead in the first quarter, the Trojans found themselves on the ropes in the second quarter. 

The Red Raiders quickly closed in on North Hall’s lead and even grabbed the lead off an early barrage from Frae’quane Wilkins in the second. Wilkins scored nine straight points to tie the game 24-24 with 4:51 left in the period. Keith Lay then pushed Madison to the lead, hitting one of two foul shots with 3:54 left. 

That was the last time Madison County led, thanks to a quartet of Trojans late in the first half.  

Rolan Imai nailed a deuce, and Luke Sanders and Matt Ray splashed 3-pointers to push the Trojans back to the lead, 33-25. In the final 2 minutes of the first half, the Trojans hit three 3-pointers, including one from Micah Jimerson and three foul shots from Sanders, who was fouled heaving a half-court shot at the end of the half. 

That was the start of the end for Madison County. The Trojans stretched their lead to 11 points off a Hulsey 3-pointer early in the third quarter. It was the beginning of Hulsey’s 16-point performance, which included two foul shots with 3:18 left in the third to give the Trojans their largest lead of the game, 55-39. 

Madison County made one last push to open the fourth quarter, sprinting out of an 8-0 run to close the gap, 62-58. But North Hall answered back with a huge Sanders 3-pointer to stop the bleeding. North Hall then set out on a 7-0 spurt to push the lead to 69-58 with 4:04 to go in the game. 

The Trojans held Madison County to eight points in the final 4 minutes of the game. 

Ray and Andrew Bales finished with 10 points each. Sanders chipped in nine points.

Jay Carruth led the Red Raiders (19-8) with 15 points.

WALNUT GROVE 58,
CHEROKEE BLUFF 56

The last time the Bears and Warriors met, Cherokee Bluff rallied to a 58-56 win. Yeah, you read that right. 

On Tuesday, Walnut Grove (14-13) returned the favor, knocking the North top-seeded Bears (18-8) out of the Region 8-4A tournament and dashing any hopes of making a Class 4A state tournament berth. 

But despite everything that happened between the tip and the final horn, it all came down to the final 3 minutes of the game.

The Bears had rallied from a 10-point third-quarter deficit and overcame key turnovers down the stretch to remain within striking distance. Logan Holmes, who had 13 of his 18 points in the third quarter, Boston Kersh and Cooper Glover made some big shots, and Holmes took charge with 27.4 seconds remaining, down 57-56, to give the Bears a shot to win the game.

Unfortunately, two turnovers, including on the final possession of the game, sealed Bluff's fate in the loss.

Kersh led the Bears with 20 points. Glover finished with 11. 

It was a slow start from the tip for both squads, with the Warriors just a bit better in the opening period to take an 11-6 lead at the end of the first 8 minutes. 

The Bears found a rhythm to start the second behind Kersh. Kersh scored 10 of the Bears' first 11 points in the second quarter to pace an 11-4 run, which turned into a 17-15 lead with 3:41 left in the quarter. 

But the Warriors fired right back, grabbing the lead on a 9-0 run, capped with a Tyler Jewell 3-pointer to give Walnut Grove a 24-17 advantage with 43 seconds left in the first half. The Warriors led 24-19 at the break. 

In the third quarter, Glover sparked the Bears, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers to tie the game, 27-27, with 5:04 left, but the Warriors set out on an 8-0 run to regain the lead 35-27.

Chase Roux was key for the Warriors in the second half, scoring 13 of his 15 points, including a basket with 1:56 left to give the Warriors their largest lead of the game, 49-39. 

The Bears cut the lead to seven points by the end of the third quarter, 42-35. 

Tyler Jewell finished with 15 points, Marcus Smith had 12, and Chase Mohn netted 11. 

SECKINGER 83,
EAST HALL 76

The Vikings’ upset bid and a berth in the state playoffs ran out of gas in the fourth in the quarterfinals of the Region 8-4A tournament at North Oconee.

The two were tied at 38 at halftime after East Hall (14-13) used a 22-20 second-quarter pull even. But the Jaguars (20-6) outscored the Vikings 22-19 in the third and 23-19 in the fourth to pull away late for the win.

Jamarcus Harrison had 27 points to pace East Hall. Chasen Jones had 17, Khalil Goss 13, and Brayden Langston 12 for the Vikings.

Carter Watkins led Seckinger with 27 points.

GAINESVILLE 43,
APALACHEE 39

Xavier Griffin scored 20 points to lead Gainesville (11-15) past Apalachee in the first round of the Region 8-6A tournament at Shiloh on Tuesday.

Big Red will place Habersham Central in the region semifinals at 8:30 p.m. Thursday in Snellville. The win also clinched a state tournament berth, the first in three seasons.  

Brandon Nelson scored seven points in the win. Ellis Pitts and Zeke Amir added five each.

(Below is the full schedule of playoff games on Tuesday for teams in the AccessWDUN coverage area)