In what could be easily viewed as an instant classic, the Creekside Seminoles defeated the McIntosh Chiefs 83-80 in a double-overtime contest between two Region 2-AAAA boys teams last Friday night in Peachtree City.

Currently occupying third place in the region, Creekside (15-7, 11-4 region) gave itself a little more breathing room in the standings with the win and set back McIntosh (11-8, 7-7), which is sitting in fourth place.

McIntosh’s girls won the early game, 42-40 over Creekside, for their fourth straight victory.
The Lady Chiefs’ victory improved their overall record to 10-9 and region record to 6-8, good for fifth place in the region.

The boys game featured Creekside’s star shooting guard-small forward, Kevin Murphy, who displayed his immense skills in overtime, in which he torched McIntosh for 18 of his game-high 35 points, including nine in the second overtime. His deft shooting, particularly from the perimeter, was exactly what Creekside needed against McIntosh’s 2-3 zone defense, which has gotten markedly better each week in the second half of the season.

As potent as Murphy was, the deciding factor was McIntosh’s inability to be proficient from the free throw line, where it went 17-of-32. McIntosh perhaps could have won the game in regulation at the free throw line, but it missed six free throws in one possession with 1:21 remaining in the fourth quarter.

“Free throws killed us,” McIntosh coach Jason Eisele said. “Normally, we shoot a good percentage from the free throw line. That’s unfortunate for us. I liked the way we played and kept fighting back each time we got down.”

McIntosh has utilized its frontcourt size in each of its victories this season. Small forward Jeremy Lampkin, who scored a team-high 22 points, including 11 in overtime, and power forward Patrick Michel, who scored 12 points, were able to do damage, but Creekside’s intense man-to-man defense shut down one of McIntosh’s biggest weapons, center Robert Chubb, who was held to under double digits (eight points).
Creekside had three players score in double figures: Murphy, Malcolm Penn (20 points) and Courtney Miller (10).

McIntosh’s Erin Justice made her presence felt early in the girls game, scoring six of her team’s eight points in the first quarter and four in the second quarter.

Justice’s aggressive play underneath the basket was the primary reason the Lady Chiefs led 23-19 at halftime.

“Erin was strong tonight from the beginning until the end,” McIntosh coach David Dowse said. “We didn’t shoot the ball from the perimeter like we did against Whitewater [a 54-37 victory] last week, so we needed someone to step up inside.”

Justice led all scorers with 18 points. Laura Higgason added 10 points for McIntosh.
McIntosh will host Westlake on Friday.

The Our Lady of Mercy Bobcats boys basketball team (13-11, 3-8 region) was handed two more region losses over the weekend, making it four straight. Greenforest Christian defeated Our Lady of Mercy 66-53 on Friday and the Bobcats lost a heartbreaker to W.D. Mohammed, 65-64 on Saturday. The girls (9-12, 7-4 region) got two wins over the weekend, beating Greenforest Christian 44-25 behind 19 points from Kelly Tolcher. They defeated W. D. Mohammed on Saturday 48-28. Camille Thompson led the Lady Bobcats with 16 points.

Landmark Christian’s girls (19-2, 10-1 region) lost their first game of 2008, falling 58-43 to Southwest Atlanta Christian (SACA) on Saturday. Sarah Todd and Diamond Hunnicutt each had 10 points and eight rebounds, while Dee Terrell scored nine points and Jo’el Christian added eight points and three steals. The loss snapped an 18-game winning streak for the Lady War Eagles. The boys team (7-10, 1-8 region) also lost to SACA, 43-29.

Starr’s Mill hosted Woodward Academy on Friday. The Lady Panthers (10-8, 5-8 region) lost to the surging Lady War Eagles. Marissa Ring had 14 points for Starr’s Mill. The boys (5-18, 4-10 region) lost another close game, 50-47. Haydn Barnes had nine points for Starr’s Mill, while Mark Conard added eight and Justin Smith added six. They will play at Westlake on Wednesday and at Northgate on Friday.

Whitewater’s boys and girls hosted region leaders Westlake on Friday and got swept. The boys (5-18, 3-11 region) lost 72-57.
Whitewater will play at Fayette County on Friday.

Sandy Creek’s boys (16-7, 12-0 region) stayed perfect in the region with a 55-35 win over Haralson County on Friday. Blake Brewer scored 14 points and Darius Harris added 10 points. The Lady Patriots (18-4, 10-2 region) won, 50-26. It was their third straight win. Sandy Creek will close out the season with a game at Villa Rica. Kenneshia Rich led the girls with 14 points.

The Region 6-AAA tournament starts next week at Haralson County High School.

login to post comments