Games of the Night: 1/18

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There are Top 10 matchups littered across Georgia this Friday. Here's a quick primer on each showdown.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>3A No. 1 Sandy Creek at 6A No. 3 St. Pius X</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Heavy favorite to repeat as Class 3A state champs, Sandy Creek rolls into one of the toughest environments in the state – Mark Kelly Gymnasium. There will be a packed house rooting on the Golden Lions who have quietly surged up the rankings. A talented sophomore class has a chance to hand Sandy Creek just their second in-state loss of the season, their lone defeat to a Georgia program coming in Game 3, a 64-63 loss to national powerhouse Grayson. The trio of [player_tooltip player_id='2046360' first='Harris' last='Reynolds'], [player_tooltip player_id='2046359' first='Tobias' last='Brinkley'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2046361' first='D'Marley' last='Elliott'] powers St. Pius X, but juniors [player_tooltip player_id='2328813' first='Aiden' last='Portee'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1300736' first='Ryan' last='Kim'] have had explosive game of their own, giving the Golden Lions great balance. All-State performers [player_tooltip player_id='1204748' first='Amari' last='Brown'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1050448' first='Micah' last='Smith'], a James Madison-signee, compose one of the winningest duos in the state. [player_tooltip player_id='2633658' first='Jared' last='White'], [player_tooltip player_id='2372832' first='Jacobi' last='Robinson'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2328847' first='Kani' last='Rashied-Henry'] are emerging prospects. Missouri baseball-signee [player_tooltip player_id='1843138' first='PJ' last='Green'] is a veteran floor spacer that must be accounted for.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>4A: No. 3 McDonough at No. 1 Pace Academy</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The two front runners in Class 4A look to grab first-place in Region 5. The two split a season ago but never had a rubber match after Lovett upset McDonough in the region tournament. Pace Academy went on to romp their way to a state title. The Knights look very much the same this year while McDonough is quite different with familiar faces playing expanded roles. [player_tooltip player_id='1329307' first='Keenan' last='Gray'] has broken out as one of the top players in the state, averaging 19.9 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.6 steals. [player_tooltip player_id='1810738' first='Nigel' last='Thomas'] holds D-I offers, chipping in 13.8 points per game as a 6-foot-7 shooter. Brothers Zion and [player_tooltip player_id='1966203' first='Zaiden' last='Greene'] bring tremendous energy on both ends of the floor and set the tone defensively. Pace Academy has great balance, four players averaging double-digits led by [player_tooltip player_id='1383030' first='Eric' last='Chatfield']'s 15.1 points per game. [player_tooltip player_id='1762523' first='Chandler' last='Bing'] is one of the most improved players in the state, posting 13.7 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.8 steals and 1.3 blocks per game. Pace Academy often bullies opponents on the backboards. [player_tooltip player_id='1054788' first='LJ' last='Moore'] is averaging 10.8 points and 5.9 rebounds while [player_tooltip player_id='1696237' first='MJ' last='Madison'] adds in 8.3 points and 4.8 rebounds. UCF-signee [player_tooltip player_id='996829' first='Kyle' last='Greene'] is among the state's savviest guards, compiling 10.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 2.5 steals per game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>2A: No. 2 Columbia at No. 5 ELCA</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Columbia looks to stay undefeated in Georgia and grab a stranglehold of Region 5. The Eagles beat ELCA 87-70 in their first meeting. [player_tooltip player_id='2046330' first='Trevian' last='Callaway'] is a speed merchant of a ball handler that makes Columbia go. Wings [player_tooltip player_id='1978523' first='Jaquavious' last='Wallace'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1654136' first='Tahmar' last='Mann'] have size, length and dynamic games. ELCA plays hard and has a deep stable of guards. They too have some nice length and athleticism on the perimeter between [player_tooltip player_id='2301497' first='Gavin' last='Lamar'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2301498' first='K-Cari' last='Mercer']. Kam Warford is a major hustler while Xavier Dotson, Joseph Raines and [player_tooltip player_id='1861304' first='Jayden' last='Bone'] balance the offense. [player_tooltip player_id='2323190' first='Ese' last='Aigbokhae'] is a big body that chews up real estate inside and scores on putbacks. If he can control the paint and force Columbia into taking jump shots instead of layups, ELCA could shake up the state.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>A D-II: No. 1 Greenforest at No. 3 Christian Heritage</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Christian Heritage fell to Greenforest twice last season but the trees are much shorter this year for the experienced Lions to try to navigate. While 7-footers don't protect the rim any more, [player_tooltip player_id='1383024' first='Daniel' last='Daramola'] is an explosive leaper at 6-foot-8 and [player_tooltip player_id='1966154' first='Caleb' last='Kawela'] is a battering ram at 6-foot-5 that must be kept off the glass. [player_tooltip player_id='1055486' first='Cash' last='Hare'], Carter Triplett and [player_tooltip player_id='1810742' first='Dontae' last='Crowder'] must eliminate second chance opportunities. Crowder's perimeter defense will be important as well, a capable defender that has drawn the assignment of guarding scoring threats all season. It will be interesting to see if he draws [player_tooltip player_id='1742138' first='Elijah' last='Lewis'] to try and stop. Lewis is wired to score, a bucket getter from all three levels. Christian Heritage will have to eliminate run out opportunities and try to make the Eagles beat them in the halfcourt. Kevin Harper and Michael Robinson are tough guards but maybe the most important is transfer [player_tooltip player_id='1160755' first='Russ' last='White'], a versatile physical perimeter player that can play all over the floor. He rebounds, defends, facilitates and can stretch the floor with his outside shot. Speaking of outside shots, for the Lions to win, [player_tooltip player_id='1558576' first='Isaac' last='Plavich'] must supply some offense, especially from beyond the arc. [player_tooltip player_id='1055485' first='Jax' last='Abernathy'] will have all the focus on him, the roughly 27-point-per-game scorer. The Trevecca Nazarene-signee will get his, it just depends on how efficient he is and whether those around him will hit shots too.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->