Cedar Grove guard Jaylen Adside races up court against Long County in the Saints 94-91 double overtime win in the Class 3A quarterfinals. Adside and his Saints teammates meed Douglass in the Class 3A semifinals on Friday at 4 pm at Ft. Valley State University. (Photo by Mark BrocK)
The Class 3A and Class 2A Final Four games for the Cedar Grove Saints and Columbia Eagles has familiar opponents to overcome this weekend to reach their respective state championships in Macon.
Cedar Grove (19-9) is set to play the Douglass Astros (16-13) for the fourth time this season as the pair is two of three Region 5-3A teams in the semifinals, including No. 2 ranked Sandy Creek.
The two schools from neighboring counties travel to Fort Valley State University for a 4:00 pm tip on Friday (March 3).
The Saints have won two of the previous three meetings this season. Cedar Grove won at home 71-71 and Douglass won its home tile 61-61 in overtime while the Saints won the Region 5-3A Tournament meeting 69-64.
Douglass defeated Lakeview Fort Oglethorpe 61-52 on the road, won 74-43 at home over Hebron Christian and knocked off No. 5 ranked Dougherty 78-73 on the road to get the return match with Cedar Grove.
The Saints defeated Lafayette 73-53 at home, upset No. 4/3 Monroe Area 62-55 on the road and won a double overtime thriller 94-91 at home against Long County. It is Cedar Grove’s eighth Final Four appearance the first since 2016 and it is the first playoff meeting against Douglass in 20 playoff appearances.
The winner will advance to the GHSA Class 3A State Championship in Macon on Friday, March 10 at 3:00 pm in the Macon Coliseum against the winner of matchup of No. 2 ranked Sandy Creek (24-6) team and No. 3 Cross Creek (20-10, 2-time defending champion).
Columbia’s Jamarcus Hatcher goes in for a slam against Eagle’s Landing Christian earlier this season. Hatcher and the No. 2 ranked Eagles take on No. 1 Westside of Augusta in the Class 2A semifinals on Saturday. (Photo by Mark Brock)
Class 2A Semifinals
The Class 2A semifinal game at 8:00 pm at Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville on Saturday features the No. 2 ranked Columbia Eagles facing the No. 1 ranked and defending champions Westside-Augusta Patriots.
Westside ended the Eagles season with an 82-72 win at home in the Sweet 16 round of the Class 2A state playoffs a year ago on the way to the title.
Columbia (30-1) had to get through two ranked opponents in the first three rounds to make the program’s 13th Final Four appearance and up Hall of Fame Coach Phillip McCrary’s career record to 695 wins and 239 losses. The Eagles ended up with a tough first round opponent in No. 10/9 ranked Drew Charter and won 63-50, followed with an 83-41 win over Union County and then a tough road win over No. 6/7 ranked Windsor Forest by a score of 74-60.
Westside (23-7) played all three games at home winning 77-32 over Vidalia, 72-63 over North Murray and 81-50 over South Atlanta to reach the semifinals.
Columbia leads DeKalb County in playoff wins at 62-20 in 26 playoff appearances that includes 20 consecutive from 2004 to 2023 and five state titles.
DCSD BASKETBALL STATE PLAYOFFS
Friday, March 3
CLASS 3A BOYS SEMIFINALS
FORT VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY, FORT VALLEY
Cedar Grove (19-9) vs. Douglass (16-13), 4:00 pm
Saturday, March 4
CLASS 2A BOYS SEMIFINALS
GEORGIA COLLEGE AND STATE UNIVERSITY. MILLEDGEVILLE
Columbia (29-1) vs. Westside-Augusta (23-7), 8:00 pm