Two high school basketball teams from East Cobb reached the finals of the Georgia High School Association basketball tournament in Macon.
The Kell girls were aiming for their second state championship on Thursday, but fell short in the Class 4A championships in a 58-50 win by Marist.
On Saturday, the Wheeler boys will be seeking their 11th state title and second in a row in the Class 6A finals against Cobb rival Pebblebrook.
The Kell Lady L0nghorns were the underdog on Thursday against Marist, which had been No. 1 in Class 4A and features high school All-American Kate Harpring, the national high school player of the year.
Kell fell behind in the first quarter but stayed close, trailing 26-21 at halftime, then took the lead in the third quarter.
But that was the only lead they would have, as Harpring helped close out Marist’s third title in five years with 12 points in the fourth quarter. She finished with 40 points and 16 rebounds, becoming the all-time girls basketball scoring leader in Georgia high school basketball history, with 3,399 points.
“It’s been a great season, but I’m super proud that we even got here,” Kell coach Kandra Bailey said in a Cobb County School District release after the game. “I’m proud of the effort we put on the floor tonight.”
Bailey, who gave birth to a baby boy less than two weeks ago, said that “obviously, I’m going to finish this season with my girls, because they’re my first kids! But now I’m going to get back home with my baby tonight.”
On Saturday night, the Wheeler boys will try to continue dominating Georgia high school basketball. They will face Pebblebrook at 7:30 p.m. in a game that can be seen live on Georgia Public Broadcasting.
The Wildcats are ranked No.1 and feature All-American guard Colben Landrew, who will be playing college basketball next season at the University of Connecticut.
They will be defending their state title against Pebblebrook in the sixth all-Cobb state finals in state history. Wheeler has won three of those games, and has 10 state titles in all.
Related:
- Lassiter swimmers, Walton wrestlers win state titles
- Wheeler retires basketball star Collier’s jersey
- Boston Celtics star joins Wheeler Athletic Hall of Fame
- East Cobb high school athletes make college commitments
- Wheeler hires football coach who won Fla. state title
- Pope youth football coach and booster battling dementia
- Walton Hall of Fame class includes former Little League star
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