Hillsman Heavy Georgia Interstate Hoops Classic All-Showcase Teams And Showcase Notebook

The 2nd Annual Georgia Interstate Hoops Classic was held this past weekend in Athens, GA at Cedar Shoals High School. There were nine games in total, eight of which were boys games. The Hillsman Heavy Georgia Interstate Hoops Classic All-Showcase team will consist of the boys that played in these eight games.

Game MVPs were awarded after each game and one game featured co-MVPs. MVPs were not selected on highest scoring output alone however, overall impact of the game, impact of winning plays and upside were all considered with game MVP awards.

The Hillsman Heavy Georgia Interstate Hoops Classic All-Showcase Teams

Here is the Hillsman Heavy Georgia Interstate Hoops Classic All-Showcase Teams.

COACH OF THE SHOWCASE: Marcus Spivey (Central Gwinnett): Spivey is in his first year at Central Gwinnett and it has been a rough season as you would expect with a rebuilding project. Spivey’s team trailed by 11 points and could have folded. He continued to coach his team hard and rally them together to force overtime and come away with the win over Lakeside-Dekalb in the first-ever overtime game in the showcase history.

FIRST TEAM:

Gai Chol (Greenforest): The Mississippi State commit had a quiet night scoring with only four points but recorded 7 rebounds and 8 blocks in a win over Doughtery. Chol’s impact is not always felt on the offensive end, his defense is what stands out the most and what makes him a first-teamer.

Etowah’s Brandon Rechsteiner (Virginia Tech) set the record for Georgia Interstate Hoops Classic points in a game with 31 in a win over Cedar Grove

Brandon Rechstiener (Etowah): The Virginia Tech commit tallied a showcase-record high 31 points and connected on six three-pointers in a win over Cedar Grove.

Caleb Taylor (Lithonia): Scored a game-high 23 points and took home MVP honors in a win over Johnson-Savannah. Taylor continues to be Lithonia’s leading scorer and leader. Look for Taylor to continue to step up his defensive efforts and be a reflection of his head coach as season progresses.

AJ Wheeler (Lakeside-Dekalb): The games co-MVP scored a game-high 30 points, 14 of those in the second half and overtime, connected on four three-pointers and made a number of impactful plays in an overtime loss to Central Gwinnett.

Emmanuel “Manny” Green (Cedar Grove): The fantastic freshman tallied 19 points showing off an array of silky smooth moves offensively to go with a number of sound and effort defensive plays for a short-handed Cedar Grove team. As Green continues to develop there will be no shortage of suitors for his efforts and has the most upside of anyone at the showcase.

SECOND TEAM :

DK Manyiel Dut (Greenforest). The Georgia State commit tallied 8 points 10 rebounds and 3 blocks in a win over Dougherty. Dut continues to impact games even without scoring and his defense is a key to that. Dut has continued to work on his perimeter shooting but reads the game well enough to know what is needed from him on any given night for his team to win.

Dimitri Angelakos (Etowah): Angelakos followed up last season’s record performance of nine three-pointers in a win over Miller Grove by dropping in six three-pointers for 18 points in a win over Cedar Grove.

Darius Reynolds (Cedar Grove): Reynolds had an impressive showing in a loss to Etowah. Reynolds posted a 21-point 15-rebound double-double with multiple second-chance points due to his offensive rebounding activity around the rim. Reynolds’ improvement from earlier in the season was on full display and he could be key for Cedar Grove the remainder of the season as they make their run in 3A.

Alfonzo Ross (Woodville-Tompkins): The USC-Beaufort commit Alfonzo Ross continues to be the steady hand and scoring force for Woodville-Tompkins. Ross tallied 25 points, 15 in the second half in a win over Cedar Shoals.

Frantzyr Chardavione was one of several Paulding County Patriots that had a hand in an overall team win over Greenbrier.

Frantzyr Chardavione (Paulding County): Tallied 18 points, eight in the second half, with timely shooting knocking down four three-pointers in a win over Greenbrier.

THIRD TEAM:

Alex Koch (Cedar Shoals); MVP of Cedar Shoals win over New Faith Christian and tallied 14 points 7 rebounds 2 assists 2 steals and 2 blocks. It was Koch’s fourth game back returning from injury.

Greenforest’s Mike Robinson came off the bench to lead Greenforest in scoring and showed he is ready when his number is called.

Mike Robinson (Greenforest): MVP of Greenforest win over Doughtery with a game-high 15 points and connected on three three-pointers.

CJ Harper (Paideia): The freshman tallied 13 points to go with a number of impactful plays in a win over Luella.

John Mark Avitabile (Central Gwinnett): Scored 13 of his 16 points in the second have and powered the Central Gwinnett come-from-behind overtime win over Lakeside-Dekalb. Avitabile knocked down five three-pointers in the victory.

Kahlil Jones (Paulding County): Jones scored 13 of his game-high 19 points in the first half in a win over Greenbrier.

HONORABLE MENTION: Jamil Aleem (New Faith Christian Academy), Devin “DJ” Hubbard (Cedar Shoals), Sebastian Reed (Lakeside-Dekalb), Camden Parada (Greenbrier), Jackson Jennings (Greenbrier), Kenan Orlovic (Paideia), Shariff Kemp (Paideia), Nick Dudley (Luella), Javonne Williams (Paulding County), Mason Etter (Etowah), Elliot Colson Jr (Cedar Grove), Elijah Lewis (Greenforest), Joshua Quarterman (Johnson-Savannah), Antonio Baker (Johnson-Savannah), Maurice Davis (Doughtery), Markell Jones (Dougherty), Mandrell Glenn (Cedar Shoals), Wes Walker (Woodville-Tompkins)

Georgia Interstate Hoops Classic Notebook

Here is a notebook of facts for the history of the Georgia Interstate Hoops Classic.

NUMBERS:

86- Most points scored by a team (Paulding County 2023)

31- Most points scored by a player (Brandon Rechstiener-Etowah 2023)

30- Second most scored by a player (Dimitri Angelakos-Etowah 2022; AJ Wheeler-Lakeside-Dekalb in 2023)

29- Largest margin of victory (Greenforest over Dougherty in 2023)

28- Etowah’s total number of made three-pointers in two games in the showcase

15- Most three-pointers made by a team in a single game (Etowah 2022)

9-Most three-pointers in a game by a player (Dimitri Angelakos- Etowah 2022)

8- Games decided by nine points or less in 2023 (out of 9 games). This includes one girls game in which Cedar Shoals girls defeated Carver-Atlanta 53-50 in the first-ever girls game in the showcases history.

7-Head Coaches that have been a head coach for a team that has appeared in a GHSA state championship game and has appeared in the showcase. (Eddie Johnson-Paideia (Therrell), Jamond Sims-Luella (Morgan County), L’Dreco Thomas-Cedar Shoals, Rasul Chester- Miller Grove, Jermaine Sellers-Kell, Rory Griffin-Greenforest, Jordan Griffin-Peachtree Ridge (Dutchtown)

4- Head Coaches that have been a head coach for a GSHA State Championship team and has appeared in the showcase. Eddie Johnson-Paideia (won state at Therrell), Jamond Sims-Luella (won state at Morgan County), Rory Griffin-Greenforest, Jordan Griffin-Peachtree Ridge (won state at Dutchtown)

2-Closest margin of victory (Cedar Shoals over New Faith Christian Academy 60-58 in 2023)

1- Games decided by more than 9 points in the nine games played in 2023, Greenforest defeated Dougherty 61-32.

1- Number of girls games to be held in the showcase (Cedar Shoals vs Carver-Atlanta in 2023)

0- Losses by a team that has played two or more games in the showcase; Etowah is 2-0.

NOTES:

MORE THAN ONCE: Etowah and Cedar Shoals are the only to teams that have played multiple games in the event. Etowah is 2-0 all-time and Cedar Shoals is 2-1 all time. Cedar Shoals is the first team to play more than one game in the event in one season. Both Etowah (Cherokee County) wins have came over Dekalb County schools (Miller Grove in 2022 and Cedar Grove in 2023).

First-Time Representation: Savannah, Ga area schools Johnson-Savannah and Woodville-Tompkins, Paulding County (Paulding County HS), Greenbrier (Columbia County/East Georgia/Augusta-Area), Henry County (Luella and New Faith Christian Academy) and Dougherty (South Georgia/Albany, GA) were the first teams from their county/areas of Georgia to be represented in the showcase.

Gwinnett County: Central Gwinnet became the first team from Gwinnett County to win in the showcases history. Gwinnett County is 1-2 in the showcase as Peachtree Ridge and Brookwood each played in 2022 and suffered losses.

Henry County: Luella and New Faith Christian Academy represented the county for the first time in the showcase in 2023. Both suffered losses and Henry County is 0-2 all-time in the showcase.

Savannah, GA: Savannah was represented by Johnson-Savannah and Woodville-Tompkins and went 1-1 at the showcase in 2023.

Dekalb County: Dekalb County was represented in 2023 by Greenforest, Lithonia, Cedar Grove and Lakeside-Dekalb went 2-2. Dekalb County is 2-3 all-time in the showcase as Miller Grove represented the county in 2022 and loss to Etowah.

Cobb County: There was no Cobb County representation in 2023. Kell is the only team from Cobb County that has played in the showcase and is 1-0 after a victory over Peachtree Ridge in 2022.

Atlanta Public Schools: Carver-Atlanta girls are the first team from APS (boys or girls) to be play in the showcase and played in the first-ever girls game in the showcase.

Fulton County: Has not been represented in the showcase.

Overtime: Central Gwinnett and Lakeside-Dekalb played in the first-ever overtime in the showcase’s history. Central Gwinnett won 75-69

All-Time Showcase Participant Records:

Etowah 2-0, Cedar Shoals 2-1 (most appearances), Kell 1-0, Greenforest 1-0, Lithonia 1-0, Woodville-Tompkins 1-0, Paulding County 1-0, Paideia 1-0, Central Gwinnett 1-0, Miller Grove 0-1, Cedar Grove 0-1, Greenbrier 0-1, Dougherty 0-1, Luella 0-1, New Faith Christian Academy 0-1, Brookwood 0-1, Johnson-Savannah 0-1, Lakeside-Dekalb 0-1, Peachtree Ridge 0-1

The Georgia Interstate Hoops Classic would like to thank all involved from school administration, coaches, players, sponsors, volunteers, showcase personnel and the avid high school basketball fan. The Georgia Interstate Hoops Classic will return in 2024 and we look forward to having your team, school and community participate.

#SeeYouInTheGym

Georgia HSFB Notes, Scores Of Interest Week 3

Georgia Week 3 of high school football was played over the weekend with only a handful of games cancelled or postponed due the approaching Hurricane Irma. Most of those games were in the southeastern coastal portions of Georgia after mandatory evacuations were issued. Here is a look at some the games of interest from Week 3 in Georgia

Cartersville’s (4-0) Trevor Lawrence passed for over 280 yards and 3 touchdowns while Rico Frye rushed for over 100 yards and two touchdowns and caught a touchdown pass as class 4A Cartersville defeated 7A Westlake (1-2) 38-5.  EJ Turner caught a pair of touchdown passes for the Purple Hurricanes who won their 34th consecutive game.

Mays (2-1) won its second consecutive game since a season opening loss to Stockbridge with a 32-20 region 5-6A victory over Langston Hughes (2-1). Jaquez Milam connected with Christian Royalston on a 42-yard pass to give Langston Hughes an early 7-0 lead. Later Mays pulled to within 7-6 on a touchdown run by Tyree Nelson. Mays took a 12-7 into halftime after quarterback Jaquez Evans hooked up with Amir Abdur Rahman on a 56-yard touchdown pass.  In the third quarter the team quickly exchanged touchdowns as Langston Hughes’ TJ Portress briefly gave the Panthers an 14-12 lead on a 4-yard touchdown run. On the ensuing kickoff Ihbin Tophia returned it 80 yards for a touchdown for an 18-14 lead. The Raiders expanded the lead to 25-14 on Nelson’s second touchdown run of the game. Antoino Grier block a punt and recovered it in the end zone for a touchdown and 32-14 Mays lead in the fourth quarter. Langston Hughes completed the scoring with a Tyrea Swanson 10-yard touchdown run for the final 32-20 margin.

Meadowcreek (3-0) improved to 3-0 for the first time in the programs 32-year history with a 29-27 win over Forsyth Central (0-3). Meadowcreek, located in Norcross, Ga in Gwinnett County, is 73% Hispanic. The Mustangs have one of the largest offensive lines in Georgia averaging around 320 pounds which paved the way for two rushing touchdowns by Chauncey Williams (180-plus yards rushing). Jeremiah Caldwell had a receiving touchdown while Alonzo Howard returned an interception for a touchdown. Meadowcreek led 26-6 at one point before Forsyth Central rallied. The Bulldogs closed to within 26-20 on a late third quarter touchdown run by Devron Orasn. Meadowcreek added its cushion early in the fourth quarter on a field goal by Christopher  Linares to put the Mustangs up 29-20. Forsyth Central added another Orasn touchdown to make it 29-27 however on their next possession were unable to convert a fourth down which sealed the victory for Meadowcreek.

Cedar Shoals (3-0) defeated North Oconee (1-2) in dramatic fashion 13-6. Ken Johnson rushed for two touchdown but it was his 5-yard touchdown with 38 seconds remaining in the game that propelled the Jaguars to the victory. Cedar Shoals has won the last two meeting between the two schools.

Stephenson (1-2) defeated Southwest Dekalb (2-2) 31-18 in a sloppy game featured five fumbles between the two teams . Ira Henderson return the second half kickoff 86 yards fro a touchdown to jump start Stephenson after trailing 6-0 at the half.  Stephenson’s Deshon Stoudemire caught a pair of touchdowns, one from Ga’von Wray another from Daren Parker. Justin Tomlin passed for three touchdowns for Southwest Dekalb.

Georgia High School Football 

Stockbridge (3-0) for the second consecutive week allowed their opponent to score on their opening possession and for the second consecutive week after that they did not allow their opponents to score again. Dutchtown (2-1) jumped out a 7-0 lead after Shanaan McKoy’s short touchdown run capped the Bulldogs opening drive. Stockbridge pulled to within 7-6 after a 30-yard interception return for a touchdown by Demaje Carter. Marquez Ezzard added a touchdown run in the fourth quarter for the final 13-7 margin. Dutchtown’s final drive ended with an interception to cap another stingy night of Stockbridge defense which has allowed only 14 points in three games this season. It was Stockbridge’s eight consecutive victory over county and region foe Dutchdown. Lovejoy (41.5), Dutchtown (41) and Mays (36.1) are all averaging 36-plus points in games this season when not including their game against Stockbridge in which all were held to single digits (Mays was shutout).

Grayson (3-0) defeated John Curtis (LA) (1-1) 22-9 on the strength of a pair of fourth quarter touchdowns. Quarterback DJ Irons rushed for a touchdown then hooked up with Jalen Rivers an 21-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter as the Rams overcame an early 9-3 deficit for the win. Grayson collected its second victory over an out-of-state opponent this season and have International School of Broward (FL) and Ramsay (AL) remaining on the schedule.  Grayson has won 17 consecutive games, including two over Alabama power Hoover, since losing to IMG Academy (FL) in their 2016 season opener.

Colquitt County (4-0) shutout Roswell (1-2) 28-0 to win its third consecutive game. Ty Leggett rushed for two touchdowns in the second half while Nigel Hillery rushed for a touchdown in the fourth quarter for the final margin.

Dacula (1-2) picked up its first win of the season by snapping  Arabia Mountain’s three-game win streak with a 9-0 shutout victory. Jalen Perry rushed for the lone touchdown of the game and Zachary Gerts connected on field goal for Dacula. Arabia Mountain (3-1) had a short touchdown run called back for holding in the first half and missed a field goal in the second half.

North Gwinnett has won three in a row since losing its season opener to Walton

North Gwinnett (3-1) won their third straight game defeating Norcross (2-2) 35-14. North Gwinnett’s Tyler Goodson rushed for over 240 yards and three touchdowns. Jimmy Urzua, who took over as quarterback for injured starter Cade Fortin in the first quarter of the Milton game, has led the Bulldogs to all three victories. Urzua and Devin Crosby each rushed for touchdowns as North Gwinnett amassed over 330 yards rushing as a team.

New Manchester (2-1) shutout Creekside 23-0. AJ Taylor rushed for over 100 yards and two touchdowns while Eddie Ellis caught a touchdown for New Manchester. Creekside (0-3) has been been shutout in all three games being outscored 89-0.

Other Scores/Notes of Interest:

Woodstock (2-1) became the fourth Georgia team to score 70-plus points this season in their 77-49 shootout victory over Kennesaw Mountain (2-1). Rockdale County (75 vs Berkmar), Habersham Central (72 vs East Hall) and Mountain View (71 vs Osborne) are the others.

Jenkins (3-0) defeated Liberty County (1-2) 43-41; Jenkins quarterback Javonte Middleton passed for three touchdowns.

Class 7A Tift (4-0) handed former region foe and defending 6A state champion Valdosta (1-3) its second straight loss with a  20-10 victory

Abbeville (SC) defeated Lincoln County (1-2) 28-24

Cedar Grove (3-0) shutout Columbia (1-2) 33-0

Peachtree Ridge (0-3) struggles to begin the season continued after losing 47-28 to Newton (3-0).

McEachern earned its first victory of the season with a win over Jonesboro

McEachern (1-2) defeated Jonesboro (2-1) 49-10

Douglas County (3-0) won it’s region opener on the road shutting out Northgate (2-1) 21-0

Hapeville Charter (3-1) shutout Wesleyan (3-1) 35-0

Games of interest postponed/cancelled due to Hurricane Irma:

Camden County at Glynn Academy

Grady at Ware County

Shiloh at Lowndes; The concern with this game was Shiloh having to travel back Gwinnett County after the game in heavy traffic due to Hurricane Irma evacuations from Florida.

Pierce County at Richmond Hill