Score Atlanta Vol. 10 Issue 8

Time to look great!

VOLUME 10 ISSUE 8

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FEBRUARY 28-MARCH 6, 2014

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YOUR SOURCE FOR SPORTS IN GEORGIA

Core Signings| Pg. 4 Wren signs young stars, locks up Braves’ future.

Traditional Finals | Pg. 8 Cambridge wins first state title in school history.

HUNTER &HUNTER Father-son duo leads Panthers toward NCAA bid | Pg. 5

saturday, mar 15 @ 7:30pm

LAST YEAR SHE HAD THE WINNING

COMEBACK STORY. WHO WILL IT BE THIS YEAR? Know a young athlete who overcame a serious injury or illness? Nominate them for Comeback Athlete of the Month at choa.org/comeback. ©2013 Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Inc. All rights reserved.

For official contest rules, visit choa.org/comeback.

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Vol. 10 Iss. 8 | Feb. 28 - Mar. 1, 2014

STARTING LINEUP PUBLISHER/EDITOR I.J. Rosenberg

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COLUMNISTS

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ON THE COVER

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INSIDE THE PREPS

GENERAL MANAGER Melanie Snare

ART/CREATIVE DIRECTOR DJ Galbiati Blalock SENIOR MANAGING EDITOR Stephen Black

BUSINESS MANAGER Marvin Botnick

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Marcus Nabors

BEAT WRITERS Ricky Dimon (Braves)

Joe Deighton (Gladiators) Jay Underwood (Hawks) Brian Jones (KSU) Joe Deighton (UGA) Craig Sager II (Falcons) Stephen Black (Tech) Jay Underwood (GSU)

STAFF WRITERS Ryan Caiafa Alex Ewalt

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Copyright 2014 Score Atlanta Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved.

Score Atlanta is published in print every other week on Fridays and a digital version is posted to ScoreAtl.com in-between print issues.

Views expressed in Score Atlanta are not necessarily the opinion of Score Atlanta, its staff or advertisers. Score Atlanta does not knowingly accept false or misleading editorial content or advertising nor is Score Atlanta responsible for the content or claims of any advertising or editorial in this publication. No content (articles, photographs, graphics) in Score Atlanta may be used for reproduction without written permission from the publisher.

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SCORE LIST | NUMBERS GEORGIA STATE | KENNESAW STATE GEORGIA | GEORGIA TECH BRAVES | FALCONS HAWKS | GLADIATORS

COVER PHOTOS COURTESY OF POUYA DIANAT/ATLANTA BRAVES, SONNY KENNEDY AND GA STATE ATHLETICS DEPARTMENT.

ON THE INSIDE AT SCORE Score Atlanta is looking for writers. Please e-mail Stephen Black at sblack@scoreatl.com or call 404-2561572 for more information.

Check AJC.com throughout the GHSA high school basketball tournament for complete coverage of every round. The AJC’s high school webpage features dropdown menus of the scores and schedules for each classification (boys and girls), a nightly roundup of game recaps, and blogs on featured playoff games.

Score Atlanta proudly works with AJC.com during the playoffs to help provide the most comprehensive and dependable coverage of hoops tournies in Georgia.

STAY CONNECTED! /SCOREATLANTASPORTS @SCOREATLANTA WWW.SCOREATL.COM WWW.GAPREPNEWS.COM

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SCORE ATLANTA | www.ScoreAtl.com

CUP OF JOE

NFL DRAFT SPECULATION HEATING UP FOR FALCONS

BY JOE DEIGHTON | JDEIGHTON@SCOREATL.COM

he NFL Draft is not until May 8, but the T speculation on which player the Atlanta Falcons will draft is at full tilt now. The NFL

Combine is one of the most scrutinized and watched events on the league’s calendar. Everyone was awed by South Carolina defensive end Jadaveon Clowney’s workout in Indianapolis earlier this week. Clowney initially was clocked in the 40-yard dash at 4.47 seconds, a time that officially became 4.53 seconds.

That time would be a good one even for running backs.

Clowney is so athletic it would be impossible to pass him up should he fall to the Falcons at pick number six. It is hard to believe that he would drop that far, which has started trade rumors throughout the league. The speculation was started by Clowney, himself,

when he said, “I wish they could trade up for me.” “They” meant the Falcons in Clowney’s interview with ESPN. “But I hope I don’t fall to No. 6,” he added. “I like Atlanta—a lot. They’re pretty good. They’ve got some guys from South Carolina on the team, also. And it’s close to home.”

Clowney’s work ethic was called into question by South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier last season. Spurrier wanted to see his defensive end work harder and not totally rely on his talent. Clowney saw it another way and felt that he did work hard. Whichever NFL team ends up taking the freakish athlete, you can rest assured that he will work hard to succeed at the professional level.

The Falcons would be a perfect fit for Clowney, as they need a top defensive player.

JAY’S JOURNAL

EXCITEMENT SURROUNDS BRAVES OFFSEASON DESPITE FEW NEW FACES

BY JAY UNDERWOOD | JUNDERWOOD@SCOREATL.COM

is upon us, which means baseball is Singpring around the corner and players are descendon Florida and Arizona spring training facil-

ities. It is the time of year when every fan base has hope and no one has been eliminated from the playoff picture. For the Braves, this season brings a sense of excitement and wonder with all that’s transpired in the offseason.

PASSIVE-AGGRESSIVE …

Early in February, the Braves were criticized for being to passive following their NL East division title that led to another quick playoff exit. Their two major moves were trading for Ryan Doumit and signing oft-injured Gavin Floyd. This didn’t do much for the

Braves’ fan base that wants to not only get to the playoffs, but also do well. All of this began to change on Feb. 4, when Jason Heyward and the Braves agreed on a two-year $13.3-million contract that bought out his final two years of arbitration. While that doesn’t sound like a big move, it was the first in a landslide of contracts handed out over the next 17 days that dictated where the franchise was in terms of talent, but also where it was going with its core group of young players.

Later that day, Freddie Freeman agreed in terms to a deal that bought out his arbitration years, as well as a few of his following years of free agency. This deal now stands as the largest contract ever awarded by the Braves to a

Of course, they also need an offensive tackle, so it will be interesting to see which direction Atlanta will go in a few months.

SIGNING SIMMONS …

Another week, another impressive signing by your Atlanta Braves. General manager Frank Wren had already given big contracts to three players under the age of 25 this month and last week he handed out another to shortstop Andrelton Simmons. Wren has committed more than $280 million dollars over the next eight years to four players: Freddie Freeman, Jason Heyward, Julio Teheran and now Simmons.

The 24-year old was signed for seven years and $58 million.

Simmons makes his money with his glove and he won his first Gold Glove Award as the National League’s best shortstop in 2013. He led the majors with 499 assists, many of them in spectacular fashion. The downside to the shortstop’s game, at least so far, is his bat. Simmons hit just .248 mostly as the Braves’ leadoff hitter last year. As a result, he may not bat leadoff in 2014. Look for manager Fredi Gonzalez to move Simmons to the eight spot in the lineup.

One thing is clear with the Braves: they have solidified their lineup and their pitching staff for the next few years. The old (Chipper

player. Freeman will make $135 million over the next eight seasons and will become the face of the Braves during their transition to the suburbs of Cobb County. The next Friday the Braves announced a six-year, $32.4 extension with Julio Teheran. Teheran is coming off a rookie season when he finished fifth in the Rookie of the Year voting and posted a 14-8 record with a 3.20 ERA. On Feb. 16, it was Craig Kimbrel’s turn to pledge his allegiance to the Braves with his four-year, $42-million deal that has a club option for a fifth season at $13-million. This locked up all of the arbitration eligible players who had not agreed on one-year deals for this coming season, but the Braves were not done. In their next move, they locked down the best defensive shortstop in the game, Andrelton Simmons, with a sevenyear $58-million deal.

These moves establish a young core that has already proved it could get the Braves to the playoffs and as they grow and mature will find a way to break through the barrier and begin to win in the playoffs again. Many people will look at this offseason and see that the Braves only spent money on the players they have, but if those players are the cream of the crop then why not? Last offseason the Braves gave B.J. Upton a five-year, $72.5-million deal that blew up in their face when Upton failed to

Jones, Brian McCann, Tim Hudson) is out. The new (Freeman, Heyward, Simmons) is in. This team is built to win now and it must do that with all the money locked up in these young players. With a new stadium coming to the franchise in 2017, this is one of the most exciting times in Atlanta Braves’ history.

FREE FALL …

Over the last 10 games, the Atlanta Hawks have won just a single basketball game.

It is virtually impossible for the Hawks to win a game on the road lately, as they have dropped their last five away from Philips Arena. Injuries, poor defense and second-half collapses have cost the Hawks over the last 10. Against Chicago on Tuesday, Atlanta had a good first quarter, jumping out to a 14-point lead, but could not finish the job.

The loss of all-star forward Paul Millsap has left the Hawks without a consistent scorer over the past three games. Al Horford is still out of action for the foreseeable future. Still, this team has a 3.5-game lead for the last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. With 26 games left, the Hawks need to tread water, win half of their games and they probably will make the playoffs. The question is can they avoid facing Miami or Indiana in the first round.

Photo courtesy of the Atlanta Falcons.

hit over .200 and was left off the playoff roster.

If he can make a comeback this season and get his numbers back to his career average the effect will be the same as signing a free agent to take his place. As long as the results improve then it doesn’t matter who is providing them.

Then there is also the case of Dan Uggla, who has been trending down since his first season with the Braves. As long as he can keep his power numbers up this season he will find himself in the lineup each night, but if he continues to struggle driving in runs, then the Braves will have to look for another option at second base. One of these options is Ramiro Pena, who is coming off a career year that was cut short by a shoulder injury that required surgery. He will likely make the squad as the utility infielder and will see playing time at third, shortstop and second base while giving the regulars a day off. Another option is youngster, Tommy La Stella, who has consistently hit the ball wherever he has been posting a .327 batting average since being drafted into the Braves’ organization. In case Dan Uggla hasn’t figured out his swing early in the season, there are options for the Braves to pair with their newly paid core.

Photo of courtesy of Pouya Dianat/Atlanta Braves.

Vol. 10 Iss. 8 | Feb. 28 - Mar. 1, 2014

ON THE COVER

GSU HOOPS

TALENTED PANTHERS ARE STATE’S BEST HOPE FOR NCAA BID

BY ALEX EWALT | AEWALT@SCOREATL.COM

O

ver the past two months, it’s hard to argue that Georgia State hasn’t been the best basketball program in Georgia. The Panthers have lost just once since Dec. 7 of last year, and have kept fans on their toes with some thrilling finishes that led to a 14-game winning streak, a school record. With four regular-season games left, the Panthers are 20-7, 13-1 in the Sun Belt Conference.

THE TURNAROUND …

If the vibe seems different than in years past, it’s because head coach Ron Hunter, who previously spent 18 years building the program at IUPUI in Indianapolis, decided to take a chance on the dormant Panther program back in 2011 after Rod Barnes was fired. GSU hadn’t had a winning season since 2003-04, but the animated, energetic Hunter turned things around in 2011-12, winning 22 games right off the bat and stoking interest in the Panthers with an exciting, fast-paced style of play. Last season brought a step back with a

younger team and 15-16 record. But this winter has proven that he’s assembled the pieces for a contender into March: a senior point guard and four-year starter in Devonta White, high-major transfers in wing Manny Atkins, post Curtis Washington and guard Ryan Harrow, and his son, R.J., a swingman who can light it up from almost anywhere on the court.

Furthering the narrative of change was the Panthers’ move this year from the East Coastheavy Colonial Athletic Association, which they joined in 2005, to the Southeast-based Sun Belt, a move that makes sense geographically and renews some old regional rivalries.

The NCAA Tournament was the offseason aspiration of the Panthers, who gained immediate eligibility for Harrow, a scoring guard coming over from Kentucky. The 6-foot-9 Washington, a Southern Cal transfer, became eligible after sitting out a year.

But the team, which was trying to integrate new Harrow and Washington into the starting lineup, stumbled out of the gate.

White and Harrow struggled to find ballhandling balance and rhythm with the wings.

A 3-6 record to start made it easy to slap the “same-old GSU” label on a group destined to underachieve. An overtime loss to Southern Miss left a bad taste in their mouth, as the Panthers blew a five-point lead with under a minute left in regulation.

“When you add two guys into the starting lineup like Ryan Harrow and Curtis Washington, it’s a cliché to say this, but I believe in team chemistry,” said Panthers play-by-play man Dave Cohen. “It took them a little while to get comfortable as a unit. When Coach Hunter moved Devonta back to the 1 and Ryan to the 2, things really started to click.”

Cohen, the voice of Panther sports for 31 years, has seen more Panther basketball — good and bad — than anyone over that span.

He’s seen the Panthers under seven coaches and in three different conferences, but just two NCAA Tournament appearances, one in 1991 under Bob Reinhart and one in 2001 under the legendary Lefty Driesell, who led the Panthers to their only Tournament win, over Wisconsin.

But starting with an inconspicuous sixpoint win over struggling former CAA mate Old Dominion, the Panthers turned it up a notch and became the first Georgia State basketball team to start 10-0 in conference.

Perhaps more impressive than the current 17-1 run is exactly how the Panthers have managed to win many of their games. It’s been a mix of close calls and blowout wins, but there hasn’t been a dull moment.

The Panthers won on December 22 at UT-San Antonio by 31 points in a game where Hunter — the team’s leading scorer at 19.3 points per game heading into the Thursday matchup with UT-Arlington — exploded for a career-high 41 points on 12 three-pointers, a school record. They blew out traditional Sun Belt power Western Kentucky on the road, 7754, using a 15-0 run right out of halftime that turned a close game into a rout. Home wins over UT-Arlington and, most recently, Louisiana-Lafayette, have turned heroes into White and Atkins, who both hit last-second threes to either tie or win games. The Panthers have also successfully navigated some tricky scheduling as a result of two postponements due to ice storms, which also disrupted practice time.

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GSU may not be 30-0 like everyone’s mid-major darling Wichita State, but these guys know what adversity looks like.

The younger Hunter is the star on the roster and has the perfect mix of fundamentals and pizzazz. He specializes in defensive deflections with his long arms and works hard for rebounds, but has been known to pull up from 30 feet when he’s in a zone. He also leads the team in minutes played (34) and steals (1.9) per game.

“I know it’s an overused term, and I’m not just saying this because he’s Coach Hunter’s son, but it’s basketball IQ,” Cohen said. “He’s got that. He knows where to go and what to do.”

The crowds at the GSU Sports Arena, which have been increasing ever since the December turnaround, clearly appreciate having a bona fide star. Perhaps the Panthers’ most prized piece of hardware from their CAA days is the Freshman of the Year award that R.J. took home last year. On this career arc, he can anticipate more accolades coming his way.

With R.J. lighting it up and playing most of every game, on the other end is the bench production. Ron Hunter favors a smaller rotation, but points and rebounds have been tough to come by for the Panther for most of the season. The key to postseason success may lie in 6-foot-5 sophomore Markus Crider, an undersized but athletic post player who has, until recently, been comfortable as a defensive specialist and rebounder.

With four regular-season games remaining and the Panthers one win away from mathematically sealing the top spot in the conference (a feat that would ensure at least an automatic bid to the NIT), GSU is positioning itself for a March run. The top two seeds in the Sun Belt receive byes all the way to the semifinals of the conference tournament in New Orleans, meaning that two wins in the Big Easy are all it would take to put the Panthers in the Big Dance for only the third time. NIT fall-back aside, a Tourney berth is within reach.

“This is what I call a window of opportunity,” Cohen says. “If there’s a time to rise above and make it happen, now is that time.”

Photos courtesy of Georgia State Athletics Department.

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Mike Scott

Combine standouts

Frank Wren got a contract extension of his own last week, but he has not stopped signing his players left and right. The latest in a long line of Braves inking deals is shortstop Andrelton Simmons, who got $58 million for seven years last week. Atlanta has committed more than $280 million to five players in the past month.

Scott is enjoying a sophomore surge with the Hawks after being selected in the 2012 second round. The former University of Virginia star is averaging 9.7 points per game (a 5.1 improvement from last season) in 17.7 minutes (an 8.3 improvement). He has scored in double-figures in three straight games, including 30-point and 20-point performances.

Adrian Hubbard, who attended Norcross High School before going to Alabama, ran a 4.69 in the 40-yard dash, had a vertical jump of 38.5 inches and broad jumped nine feet, nine inches.

Telvin Smith, a former Lowndes standout who helped FSU win the National Championship, recorded the second-fastest time among linebackers in the 40yard dash (4.52 seconds).

By Ricky Dimon

WHO’S HOT

Atlanta Braves

SCORE LIST

By Brian Jones

SPRING TRAINING

Spring training has begun, which means we are only a month way from the Braves kicking off the 2014 season.

Atlanta will feature almost the same team from last year that won the NL East, which means the expectations will be high for the Braves this upcoming season. Can they go even further in the playoffs?

HALL OF JAVY

Speaking of the Braves, former catcher Javy Lopez will be inducted into the Braves Hall of Fame in May. Javy was a three-time all-star who hit .287 and 260 home runs in 15 seasons in the majors. Javy was also the MVP of the 1996 NLCS. Congrats to Javy, because he was well-loved by both his teammates and the fans.

NEW TROJAN

Ed Dudley will move from the swamp of Waycross to Carrollton to coach the Trojan football team. Dudley had been the head coach at Ware County since 2009 but will now be the successor to Rayvan Teague, who retired. Based on the success Dudley has had at Buford, Walton and Ware, he will have no issues doing the same at Carrollton.

KSU BASEBALL

Don’t look now, but the Owls may have the best college baseball team in the state. They are only 6-4 but they got big wins over Georgia and Georgia Tech this past week. Kennesaw State was one win away from winning the Atlantic Sun Conference last season and there is no reason it can’t go further this year.

SEMIFINAL ACTION

After a week of furious early-round action, it’s down to the final four in each high school basketball class and seven locations across the state will be hosting. If you can’t make it out to one of the venues, be sure to check out scoreatl.com and ajc.com for the latest scoring updates and recaps of all the games.

WHO’S NOT

SCORE ATLANTA | www.ScoreAtl.com

Georgia Tech Hoops

Injuries

Clowney chances

The ACC is in great shape with Syracuse, Duke, Virginia and North Carolina all looking like major players in March.

Georgia Tech, however, is missing out on the fun. The Jackets have lost four of their last five games after going 1-3 in four straight at home.

They have scored no more than 55 points in four of their last five outings.

The injury list is piling up for the Hawks, who are already missing Al Horford and John Jenkins for the season. Paul Millsap suffered a knee contusion last Friday and missed games this week against Chicago and Boston. Pero Antic (ankle) has been sidelined for the last 16 games and Gustavo Ayon (shoulder) had missed four in a row as of Wednesday.

Jadeveon Clowney, in a recent ESPN interview, expressed an interest in having the Falcons trade up in the NFL Draft to snag him. Neither Clowney nor Atlanta fans, however, should get their hopes up. The star defensive end ran an official 4.53 in the 40-yard dash, improving his already-lofty stock. Simply put, trading up would be too expensive.

NUMBERS

OUR TWO CENTS

By Craig Sager II

Our email newsletter is something we take a lot of pride in at Score. If you aren’t familiar with it, it is a high school sportsheavy publication that we produce each day to fill in our readers on the latest happenings in Georgia prep sports. We send it out Monday through Friday throughout the year and Monday through Saturday during the fall.

Not only do we cover popular sports like football, basketball and baseball, we also cover every other varsity sport the GHSA fields. If you like Georgia high school sports at all, sign up for our email newsletter by visiting www.tinyurl.com/scorenewsletter and enter your email address(es) that you’d like added to the distribution list.

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TRIVIA QUESTION

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME GEORGIA STATE MEN’S BASKETBALL MADE THE NCAA TOURNAMENT?

ANSWER ON PAGE 14

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SANITY AT LAST

“I need to pitch good to make this team. I’m not going to take any start for granted. Throw strikes and try to pitch the best I can in spring training.”

37-year-old Braves pitcher Freddy Garcia on performing in spring training.

28 2003 183

National-record blocked shots by sophomore Kamera Harris in Dutchtown’s firstround win.

The last time before this season that UGA basketball recorded 10 SEC wins.

Wins by new Carrollton coach Ed Dudley in 22 years as a head coach.

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Top-10 draft picks made by the Falcons since their inaugural 1966 season.

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Consecutive seasons that Jefferson has swept traditional and dual wrestling state titles.

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Wrestlers in state history with four individual titles after Buford’s Chip Ness and Collins Hill’s Sean Russell joined the list.

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Gold medals won by the U.S. in the Sochi games, good enough for fourth place.

25

Weeks until the 2014 Metro PCS Corky Kell Classic kicks off the football season.

ERIC BERRY | DB

DEMARCO MURRAY | RB

CJ SPILLER | RB

Š 2014 adidas AG. adidas, the 3-Bars logo and the 3-Stripes mark are registered trademarks of the adidas Group.

adizero 5-star | 6.7 oz

Gorman in the heavyweight class.

The Bears’ win interrupted a streak of six consecutive state meets won by Pope in dual and traditional styles. Ironically, Cambridge defeated Pope at the Area 7-AAAAA meet last month for the Bears’ first area or region title of any type.

PREP SPORTS

CAMBRIDGE WINS FIRST-EVER TITLE; ARCHER DOMINATES AGAIN

BY STEPHEN BLACK | SBLACK@SCOREATL.COM

T

he state traditional wrestling championships were held Saturday at six locations throughout the state. Each classification held its meet at a different location due to inclement weather last week, when it was originally schedule to take place at The Arena at Gwinnett.

Cambridge won its first state championship of any kind in school history by winning the Class AAAAA meet at Loganville.

“It’s the result of the hard work of so many,” said Cambridge athletics director Matt Lawless on his athletic program’s first championship. “As a new school, it’s hard getting the right coach to come here and build a program quickly. We knew we had the talent. That said, Coach (Don) St. James was the guy. And all the hard work and credit really goes to him.”

The Bears won a tight affair in which the top four teams scored within 22 points of each other. Cambridge had three wrestlers win state titles: J.R. Salemi (120 pounds), Brandon Filosi

(126 pounds) and Devin Kane (145 pounds).

Kane won an important match in the finals by outpointing Pope’s T.J. Collins 6-2. Kane’s win gave the Bears 27 points. Two Bears came in second: Will Britain (138 pounds) and Malik McNeil (285 pounds, the heavyweight class).

Allatoona, meanwhile, saw five wrestlers come in the top five of their respective weight classes: Cody Anderson (120 pounds), Ethan Benedict (132 pounds), Jack Woods (138 pounds), Jacob Robinson (152 pounds), Will Kemp (160 pounds) and Cody Webb (182 pounds). However, the Bucs had no wrestlers win state championships.

Pope, the defending Class AAAAA traditional state champion, had two individual state champions in Jake Adcock (138 pounds) and Jake Henson (160 pounds). In addition to Collins finishing second, Josh Tazzetta came in third in the 113-pound weight class. The Greyhounds’ only other top-five finisher was Seth

Class AAAAA

1............................. Archer 2...............Camden County 3....................... Collins Hill 4................Chattahoochee 5.................. North Forsyth

1...................... Cambridge 2......................... Allatoona 3................................ Pope 4.......... Woodland-Bartow 5.......................Creekview

6......................... Parkview 7......................McEachern 8..........................Lowndes 9...........................Marietta 10...................... Mtn. View

CLASS AAAA ...

At West Laurens, Gilmer won its second straight AAAA traditional title and its fourth wrestling state title in the past two years (when coupled with two dual championships). The Bobcats had four individual state champions and won

Class AAAA

Final Score Atlanta Wrestling Rankings Class AAAAAA

CLASS AAAAAA ...

Archer won its second traditional state championship in a row as five Tigers wrestlers won state championships Saturday at the Class AAAAAA traditional state championship meet at Chattahoochee. Archer also won dual wrestling championships the past two seasons.

Grant Aycox (132 pounds), Thomas Bullard (152 pounds), Daniel Bullard (160 pounds), Elliott Lee (195 pounds) and M.J. Couzan (285 pounds) each won state championships for Archer. In addition, Chris Diaz (126 pounds), Sam Bullard (138 pounds) and Quin Miller (182 pounds) each came in second for the Tigers. Archer easily beat second-place Camden County, which netted 183.5 points and thirdplace Collins Hill, which totaled 102.5

1..............................Gilmer 2........................Alexander 3.................................Cass 4..............Lumpkin County 5........................ Carrollton 1............................. Buford 2..................Banks County 3.......Woodward Academy 4...................Elbert County 5........................ North Hall

CLASS AAA ...

Buford added to its recent wrestling trophy case with the state traditional championship, which joins its first-ever dual championship won in January. Six Wolves wrestled their way to individual state crowns in their home gym.

Buford scored 151 points as a team to second-place Banks County’s 101. Elbert County took third with 195 and Woodward Academy scored 78 to come in fourth.

CLASS AA ...

Jefferson won its 14th straight traditional state wrestling championship at the AA meet at Toombs County. The Dragons totaled 193 points, beating second-place Bremen, which had 156. Six Jefferson wrestlers won individual state championships.

CLASS A ...

Commerce won its second wrestling state championships of the school year and third in program history in its home gym. The Tigers had 222.5 points to runner-up Gordon Lee’s 131.5. Athens Christian took third with 129 points. Five Commerce grapplers won individual state championships.

Photos courtesy of Rob Saye, Sonny Kennedy and Woodward.

Class AA 6.......................Glenn Hills 7...................Locust Grove 8..................West Laurens 9........... Heritage-Catoosa 10......................... Lithonia

Class AAA 6................South Paulding 7............................... Rome 8....................Ware County 9................................... Ola 10......... Effingham County

the meet with 191 points to second-place Cass’ 160. Alexander came in third with 144 points.

1.........................Jefferson 2............................Bremen 3....................Social Circle 4................Toombs County 5..................................GAC

6...............................Lovett 7...........................Spencer 8............................. Vidalia 9....................... Monticello 10..................Westminster

Class A 6.........................Rockmart 7.......................... East Hall 8................ Blessed Trinity 9......................Sonoraville 10..............Oconee County

1.......................Commerce 2......................Gordon Lee 3............. Athens Christian 4..................Turner County 5...............Holy Innocents’

6.............. Mt. Zion-Carroll 7....................... Darlington 8.................................Trion 9.......................St. Francis 10.............................. ELCA

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SCORE ATLANTA | www.ScoreAtl.com

Score Atlanta/AJC Pre-Playoff Basketball Rankings AAAAAA Boys

1.......................... Wheeler 2............... North Gwinnett 3.......................Tift County 4.........................Norcross 5...................Pebblebrook 6.........................Westlake 7.............. Douglas County 8......................... Berkmar 9.............................Walton 10............................Luella

AAAAA Boys

1.........................Allatoona 2....................Miller Grove 3...........................Jenkins 4................ Clarke Central 5............... Warner Robins 6.................... Stephenson 7.............................Tucker 8............................... Drew 9.......................... Osborne 10................... Sprayberry

AAAA Boys

1........................ Columbia 2....................... Alexander 3...................... Glenn Hills 4.........................Westover 5......Johnson-Gainesville 6.......................Jonesboro 7........................... Rutland 8................Fayette County 9..............Eagle’s Landing 10...................River Ridge

AAA Boys

1........Johnson-Savannah 2........................Savannah 3........ Washington County 4.....................Cartersville 5.............................Buford 6...............Morgan County 7....................Cedar Grove 8........................ St. Pius X 9................Blessed Trinity 10................Elbert County

AA Boys

1................................. GAC 2.............................Vidalia 3..............................Laney 4...........................Calhoun 5...........Northeast-Macon 6........................ Jefferson 7............................Pelham 8.................... Manchester 9..............................Model 10.......... Crawford County

A Boys

1.....Greenforest Christian 2...................... St. Francis 3....... Landmark Christian 4......North Cobb Christian 5.......Whitefield Academy 6...........................Treutlen 7.............Athens Christian 8.............................. Portal 9........... Wilkinson County 10............ Holy Innocents’

AAAAAA Girls

1..................... McEachern 2.............................Archer 3......................... Hillgrove 4.........................Norcross 5.........................Parkview 6..................North Forsyth 7.........................Westlake 8.........................Lowndes 9.............. Douglas County 10..............Mountain View

AAAAA Girls

1..........Southwest DeKalb 2............................... Drew 3.............................Tucker 4..............................Salem 5................ Clarke Central 6.......................... Osborne 7..... Northside-Columbus 8...........Effingham County 9.....................Forest Park 10....................Greenbrier

AAAA Girls

1..............................Redan 2....................... Columbus 3........................ Columbia 4....................Cross Creek 5.............South Effingham 6........................... Monroe 7.........................Chestaee 8.................Mary Persons 9................Fayette County 10...................River Ridge

AAA Girls

1........ Washington County 2.............................Buford 3........................ St. Pius X 4..............................Beach 5...............Morgan County 6...............Central-Carroll 7................Tattnall County 8................. Dodge County 9..................... Sonoraville 10.................. Pike County

AA Girls

1.........................Kendrick 2........................ Wesleyan 3................................. GAC 4..............................Laney 5............................Pelham 6........................ Pepperell 7...............Putnam County 8.............................Vidalia 9...........................Calhoun 10...................... Jefferson

A Girls

1.............. Holy Innocents’ 2...................... St. Francis 3........George Walton Aca. 4...Southwest Atlanta Chr. 5............... Randolph-Clay 6.................... Calvary Day 7.......................Darlington 8............................Claxton 9............................Paideia 10...............Turner County

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UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA

BULLDOGS LOOKING FOR MARCH MAGIC

BY JOE DEIGHTON | JDEIGHTON@SCOREATL.COM

M

arch Madness is nearly upon us. At the beginning of the season, things didn’t look promising for the Georgia Bulldogs to gain a spot in the NCAA Tournament. But, after six out of seven conference wins, the Dawgs are right where they need to be for their hopes of being the third SEC team to book a trip to the Big Dance.

A 73-56 win over South Carolina last Saturday in Columbia was huge for this team, as it easily survived a potential trap game against an opponent that is tied for last in the SEC. Kenny Gaines scored a career-high 27 points and Georgia emphatically pulled away from a 34-34 halftime tie by dominating the second half 39-22. UGA followed that up that with a 71-56 home victory over Missouri on Tuesday to complete a season sweep of the Tigers.

Sophomore Charles Mann scored a team-high 19 points in the 71-56 conference win. Mann has notched double-figures in six of the last

GEORGIA STATE

PANTHERS EARN DOUBLE BYE FOR SUN BELT TOURNAMENT

BY JAY UNDERWOOD | JUNDERWOOD@SCOREATL.COM

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he Panthers have four regular-season games remaining and have already clinched a double-bye into the semifinals of the Sun Belt Tournament. With two more victories, they will also guarantee themselves the regular-season title in their first season back in the Sun Belt.

Now that Georgia State is a known commodity, other teams are bringing their best games when they face the Panthers, trying to knock off the top team in the conference. The games have become more physical and the results have been closer than head coach Ron Hunter would like.

Opponents have begun to attempt to deny the ball from R.J. Hunter, but he has still found a way to average 19.3 points per game. Hunter, the coach’s son, has also been doing other things better such as using himself as a decoy to distract the other teams’ defenses and creating opportunities for the players around him.

Ryan Harrow has gotten his scoring average back up to 17.3 points per game and has done a

eight games and has become the go-to scorer in the Bulldogs’ starting lineup.

Georgia sits in third place in the SEC with a 10-5 conference record and an overall mark of 16-11. If the Bulldogs can get to 20 wins, they should be one of the teams to make the tournament.

TYLER IMPRESSES …

The baseball team picked up a 6-4 win over Furman at Foley Field earlier this week.

Freshman pitcher Robert Tyler notched his first college win. Tyler pitched five strong innings, allowing one run on two hits while striking out six Furman batters. Patrick Boling came on in relief to pitch four innings, allowing three runs on five hits while striking out four.

Junior Nelson Ward had a hit, stole two bases and scored a run to lead UGA to the win.

“Robert Tyler pitched extremely well and we were able to move runners, steal four bases and score some runs,” Georgia head coach Scott Stricklin told the team’s website. “We switched up the lineup a bit today, not sure you’ll see it exactly the same way Wednesday as Georgia State has a left-hander throwing, but Hunter (Cole) and Skyler (Weber) I thought did well at different positions as we continue to play well defensively.”

The Bulldogs are now 2-5 on the season but have their next 15 games at home. This was a good way to kick off the long home-stand.

better job facilitating for his teammates.

SUPPORTING CAST …

Against Louisiana-Lafayette last Saturday, Manny Atkins was the hero, hitting a three with 0.8 seconds on the clock to seal the game for the Panthers. That gave them an 8077 home win and pushed their Sun Belt record to 13-1. Atkins finished with 12 points, seven rebounds and three assists while Devonta White scored 17 in support of Harrow’s teamhigh 18. Curtis Washington also recorded three blocked shots at the defensive end of the floor.

The past two games have shown the emergence of Markus Crider, who scored 10 and 12 points against Louisiana-Monroe and Louisiana-Lafayette, respectively. If these are signs of what he can do for the rest of the season, it would give the Panthers a scoring option off the bench that they have desperately needed all season. These are the first double-digit scoring efforts of Crider’s college career. He often found himself open under the basket when his defender left to help on the driving guards, which allowed him to easily receive passes and convert easy buckets. The past two games have seen Crider convert 11 of 12 field-goal attempts while grabbing a total of 13 rebounds. If he emerges as a player who can be counted on to play solid defense and find the holes in the zone, coach Hunter will be forced to give him more minutes, which would lengthen Georgia State’s bench.

GEORGIA TECH

TECH SWEEPS SPARTANS, FALLS TO OWLS

BY STEPHEN BLACK | SBLACK@SCOREATL.COM

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he baseball team fell to 4-4 on the season after a 5-3 extra-innings loss to Kennesaw State Tuesday at Russ Chandler Stadium. Tech forced extra innings when freshman Keenan Innis bunted in Elliott Barzilli in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game. A dropped fly ball, however, cost Tech the game in the top of the 12th.

The loss to the Owls ended a three-game winning streak for Tech that included wins over UNC-Greensboro, which visited Atlanta over the weekend. In Game 1, Jonathan King started the game and earned the win by tossing five innings. First baseman Thomas Smith homered and drove in four runs while going 3-for-3. The pitching staff was the key to victory in Game 2 of the series as Tech shut out the visiting Spartans 7-0. Dusty Isaacs was credited with his second win of the season in relief, but three Tech pitchers combined on the shutout including Cole Pitts, the starter, and Tanner Shelton,

KENNESAW STATE

BASEBALL GETS BIG WIN OVER TECH, SPLITS WITH GARDNER WEBB

BY BRIAN JONES | BJONES@SCOREATL.COM

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he baseball team was busy this past weekend as it played host to Gardner-Webb for a four-game series. Last Friday’s opener saw the Owls come away with a 2-1 win in 11 innings.

Max Pentecost drove in the game-winning run in the bottom of the 11th to give the Owls their fourth win of the season. The Owls weren’t so lucky on Saturday, as they fell to the Bulldogs 8-4 in the first game of the day and 3-0 in the second. A highlight for Kennesaw State was Pentecost getting a hit in each contest, which extended his hitting streak to eight games.

Pentecost extended the streak to nine as he led the Owls to 10-6 win over the Bulldogs on Sunday. He and Chris McGowan hit home runs to give KSU a series split against GardnerWebb. Pitcher Chris Irwin got the win for the Owls, giving up six hits and one run while striking out eight batters.

MAKING HISTORY …

On Tuesday, the baseball team did some-

who tossed one inning to close out the game.

The trio allowed just four hits. Right fielder Ryan Peurifoy went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases and Matt Gonzalez went 3-for-5.

The series sweep concluded Sunday when Tech’s offense stole the show with 12 runs on 18 hits in a 12-3 win. Smith homered for the second time this season and drove in two.

Second baseman Mott Hyde went 2-for-5 with three RBIs and Barzille also had three RBIs. HARD-LUCK HOOPS …

The men’s basketball team lost to Clemson in Atlanta Saturday 63-55 to fall to 13-14 overall and 4-10 in the ACC. The Jackets led 29-23 at the half, but were held to 9-of-24 shooting in the second half and were outscored in that stanza 40-26. Trae Golden led Tech with 17 points, including three buckets from beyond the arc, and Daniel Miller scored 14 and led Tech with eight boards.

Coach Brian Gregory’s team will now hit the road for three straight ACC games, which started with a trip to Notre Dame Wednesday night. The Jackets will then travel to Florida State Sunday before playing in Syracuse Tuesday.

The Jackets’ last trip to South Bend brings warm memories as Tech won 88-80 in 1990 before going on to win the ACC and advancing to the NCAA Final Four for the first time.

thing that had not been done since 1989. It defeated Georgia Tech at Russ Chandler Stadium.

The Owls scored a 5-3 win over the Yellow Jackets in a 12-inning affair. Kennesaw led 2-0 through five innings, but the Jackets scored a run in the sixth and in the ninth, which led to extra innings. It was the Owls who broke the tie in the 11th when Karl Simmons scored from second base due to a wild pitch. Ryan Peurifoy drove in the game-tying run in the bottom of the 11th to keep the game going. It finally ended when Dan Ivey drove in two runs in the top of the 12th and gave the Owls their sixth win of the year.

BASKETBALL UPDATE …

The basketball season is winding down and the men’s team is doing what it can to finish strong. On Saturday, the Owls took on Florida Gulf Coast and came up short, falling 78-68.

“Our guys competed and took another step forward today,” Kennesaw State interim head coach Jimmy Lallathin told ksuowls.com.

“We stuck together and fought hard and had answers for their runs. We just had a couple of turnovers here and there and were just a couple of stops from getting to where we wanted to be.”

Delbert Love led the Owls with 22 points, while Orlando Coleman added seven points, eight rebounds and seven assists.

Vol. 10 Iss. 8 | Feb. 28 - Mar. 1, 2014 ATLANTA HAWKS

HAWKS MAKE MINOR MOVES, END LOSING STREAK

BY JAY UNDERWOOD | JUNDERWOOD@SCOREATL.COM

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he Hawks acquired Antawn Jamison at last week’s trade deadline and quickly waived him, so he never appeared on the roster. They traded away the draft rights to Cenk Akyol, who has never appeared in the NBA. This trade had more to do with the cap and was less about the players involved. In order for this transaction to take place, the Hawks had to cut ties with Jared Cunningham, who had been bouncing back and forth from the D-League to the Hawks all season. Atlanta also signed Dexter Pittman to bolster its frontcourt and resigned Cartier Martin for the remainder of the season.

With their 107-98 shorthanded victory over the Knicks last Saturday, the Hawks were able to snap their eight-game losing streak.

The injury bug is still nagging the Hawks, especially along the front line, which has limited the number of lineups head coach Mike Budenholzer has been able to use. Against the Knicks, Demarre Carroll started at the four, which was

ATLANTA BRAVES

EXTENSION SPREE CONTINUES WITH SIMMONS

BY RICKY DIMON | RDIMON@SCOREATL.COM

T

he Braves mean business this offseason.

That is a statement nobody could have expected to hear as recently as a month ago, when Atlanta fans were still stewing from the losses of Tim Hudson and Brian McCann and a lack of signings. In recent weeks, however, signings are coming so fast it is difficult to keep up with them. First it was Jason Heyward and Freddie Freeman; then it was Julio Teheran and Craig Kimbrel. Most recently, it was Andrelton Simmons.

General manager Frank Wren continued his spending spree Feb. 19 by locking up Simmons for seven years with a $58 million deal.

The contract features a signing bonus of $1 million and escalating salaries of $1 million (2014), $3 million (’15), $6 million (’16), $8 million (’17), $11 million (’18), $13 million (’19) and $15 million (2020). Simmons hit .248 last season with 17 home runs, 59 RBIs and 76 runs scored. He won the Gold Glove Award for National League shortstops after being credited

not too surprising since he was matched up against Carmelo Anthony.

One possible addition to the team that could help bolster its height up front would be bringing over Mike Muscala, whom Atlanta took in the second round of this year’s draft. Muscala is a seven-footer who has been playing well in Spain and could provide added toughness and create more opportunities for other players to get the proper breathers during games. Rumors have been swirling about his addition to the team this week and it appears that he will be on the roster once a buyout with his Spanish team has been reached.

This would probably spell the end of Dexter Pittman’s short tenure in Atlanta.

INJURY REPORT …

Paul Millsap will be out at least an additional two games with his knee injury and Jeff Teague is still not 100 percent following his ankle injury, but Teague is playing out of necessity. Gustavo Ayon is still out with his shoulder injury and Pero Antic is still rehabbing his way back to form after sustaining a stress fracture in his right ankle. Once these players are back in the fold, the Hawks will have a realistic chance of making a push back up the standings. As of now, however, they are too shorthanded to make a serious run at reclaiming either the Eastern Conference’s three or four seed.

with 41 defensive runs saved.

“We believe he is the premier shortstop in the game and we’re thrilled to have him signed through all of his arbitration years and his first two free-agent years,” Wren told the team’s website. “It continues with the theme of keeping our core together for a long time and we think he’s an integral part of that…. We’re really happy with the progress we have made in putting this team together and keeping it together for the long term. But I wouldn’t characterize that we are done. I would characterize it that it’s a work in progress.”

SPRING TRAINING NOTES …

Jonny Venters is recovering from Tommy John surgery, which he underwent last May. The veteran reliever is scheduled to throw off of flat ground this weekend and off of a mound in two weeks. … Southpaw starter Mike Minor sat out the first week of training camp due to shoulder soreness. He is now long-tossing from 120 feet without any trouble and is expected to join the rotation in mid-March. Manager Fredi Gonzalez is optimistic that Minor will not start the season on the 15-day disabled list. … The Braves opened their spring training schedule with a Wednesday afternoon home date with Detroit at Champions Stadium in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. They played a road game against the Tigers on Thursday before a Friday night home contest versus Houston.

ATLANTA FALCONS

FALCONS BOOST PERSONNEL DEPARTMENT

BY CRAIG SAGER II | CSAGER@SCOREATL.COM

T

he Falcons’ No. 6 pick in the 2014 NFL Draft marks the highest draft position they have seen since head coach Mike Smith came to Atlanta in 2008. In fact, there have been just 22 times in the 48-year history of the franchise that the Falcons used a top-10 pick. The importance of this year’s draft is common knowledge by now and two new members were added to the personal department this past week to make sure that no stone is left unturned this offseason. Former Kansas City Chiefs’ general manager Scott Pioli was hired earlier this offseason as assistant GM and the newest hires are former St. Louis GM Billy Devaney and long-time talent evaluator Russ Bolinger.

Devaney brings more than 30 years of NFL personnel experience to the Falcons, including his four years as the Rams’ GM. Bolinger joins the Falcons after working under Devaney in St. Louis and spending five seasons as a national scout for the Washington Redskins after nine

GWINNETT GLADIATORS

GLADIATORS END SIX-GAME LOSING STREAK

BY JOE DEIGHTON | JDEIGHTON@SCOREATL.COM

T

he Gwinnett Gladiators got a much-needed win over Evansville, 4-1 on Tuesday. It was the first victory in the last seven games for the Gladiators and their first regulation win since Feb. 1, when they beat Orlando.

Gwinnett took an early 1-0 lead when forward Marshall Everson scored his 15th goal of the season. Forward Bobby Hughes added to the lead in the second period with his ninth tally of the year. Joey Haddad put the game away on a short-handed breakaway to make the score 4-1 just four minutes into the third period. Maxime Legault had two assists and finished with a plus-three rating. The aggressive forward also led the team in shots with five.

The Glads had just one power-play while taking three penalties on the other end. However, Haddad’s short-handed goal evened things out for the special teams. Goaltender Andrew Loewen had 35 saves in gaining his first win for the Gladiators.

13

seasons with the Detroit Lions. Bolinger is the guy you need for evaluating talent in the trenches and he played seven seasons on the offensive line in Detroit before finishing his career with the Los Angeles Rams.

“Billy and Russ are experienced talent evaluators and I am pleased to add them to our personnel department,” said Falcons’ general manager Thomas Dimitroff. “I am confident that by adding Billy and Russ we have made our personnel department better.”

HEAT OF THE MOMENT …

The Falcons seem to be set to draft either a pass rusher or offensive lineman, but as head coach Mike Smith alludes to, drafting early in the first round has its challenges.

“When you are picking in the top seven or eight it is a different dynamic,” explained Smith. “It is pretty clear that there are seven, eight or 10 guys that warrant that pick and you have to go through all the different scenarios.

When you are picking in the back of the first round it is a little bit different because you have a lot more choices.”

Day 1 of the league year is March 7 and more roster moves will likely be made at that point regarding free agency and recalibrating the roster. Compensatory draft picks are rewarded in mid-March and this year’s NFL Draft will begin Thursday, May 8.

STRANGE STATS …

Every team wants to score the first goal of a game, but doing so does not always mean that team will ultimately win. The Gladiators have demonstrated as much this season, especially when they take a 1-0 lead. When Gwinnett gives up the first goal of the game, its record is 3-22. When the Glads get on the board first, they are just 15-11-1-0.

Despite the losing streak over the last two weeks, one thing that hasn’t suffered is the Glads’ penalty kill. Against Reading last Saturday, the PK was nine-for-nine. At home, the Gladiators have successfully killed the last 44 of 49 power-play chances.

If Gwinnett gets into the third period with any type of lead, it is unbeatable. The Gladiators are 13-0 when holding an advantage after two periods.

ON THE DOCKET …

Florida is a frequent opponent for Gwinnett, but the Everblades and Glads will get extremely familiar over the next two weeks with five games against each other. The first three games of this latest regular-season series will be played at Gwinnett Arena on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Somewhat surprisingly, the last-place Glads have a 3-2 record against the Everblades this season, which includes an 8-1 thrashing back on Jan. 4.

Florida is 27-18-2-4 for its 2013-14 campaign, good for fourth place in the South Division. Gwinnett is in last place in the South and second to last in the Eastern Conference at 19-30-2-2.

14

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