Basketball playoff roundup: Benedictine, Calvary girls among Savannah schools in Elite Eight
It's been so long since Benedictine advanced to the state quarterfinals in basketball -- officials at the school weren't sure when the last time the Cadets reached Elite Eight status.
One thing they do know -- this year's squad coached by Frank Williams is a special, talented and determined group.
The Cadets played an impressive brand of basketball Saturday night and had no problem handling visiting Perry in a 72-59 victory in the second round of the Class 4A playoffs. With the win, BC advances to the Elite Eight for the first time since anyone at the school could remember.
Caleb Jones had another stellar performance as the sophomore guard put on a scoring clinic -- knocking down four treys among his game-high 27 points. Stephon Frazier, recently named the Region 3-4A Player of the Year -- ran the show from the point and excelled on both ends of the court -- contributing 12 points. Junior Luke Kromenhoek, the 4-star quarterback committed to play football at Florida State, was a big factor with his physical, gritty style of play and he added nine points.
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The Georgia Basketball Project keeps records -- and the website (http://www.ghsbp.com) has the last BC team reaching the state quarterfinals way back in 1959 -- when Vic Mell led a Cadet squad to the Class 3A state semifinals, where it lost to LaGrange, before playing in a 3rd place game, where the Cadets lost to Northside Atlanta to finish fourth in the state tournament.
"We didn't keep as good of records as we should have with some of our sports teams in the past," said BC athletic director Jack Holland, from the Cadet Class of 2003. "I know we haven't been this far in my lifetime, so it's been a while."
Now the Cadets (17-5) are set to host Madison County (26-3) in an Elite Eight matchup set for Wednesday at 6 p.m.
"I think we have one of the best teams in school history here," said Frank Williams. "And we're getting to the quarterfinals in a 32-team bracket against some tough competition. We've got Stephon (Frazier) who is the consummate point guard who gets the ball where we need it, when we need it and can score himself. His athleticism and understanding of the game make him so special.
"And Caleb is a totally different animal, he reminds me of the great guards from Savannah back in the day with his elite scoring ability -- and he's getting better and better."
Williams complimented the play of Kromenhoek and Ladon Bryant, a quarterback and receiver who were keys in the Cadets run to their second straight football championship in December.
"One of our challenges was getting our football players into basketball shape and then developing that cohesiveness with the team," Williams said. "But Luke and Ladon made it easy with their leadership. Luke is more of a lead by example type of guy, and Ladon is more verbal -- but they both bring that championship mentality to the court and to the locker room."
Frazier said the team is excited about its success, but not satisfied yet.
"It's been a great season, we've accomplished a lot -- but we still have more work to do," Frazier said. "We stayed together, stayed poised and played as a team tonight. That's what Coach Williams is always talking about and I think we did a good job of it tonight."
Woodville-Tompkins 81, Pelham 62
The Wolverines rolled to a win a home against Pelham and advanced to the Class A Division I Elite Eight. They are set to host King's Ridge Wednesday, March 1, at 6 p.m.
Alfonzo Ross led the way for the Wolverines as the senior guard poured in a career-high 42 points. Jonathon Pickering had 18 and Joey Bell added seven for Woodville, which improved to 20-9 on the season.
Last season, Woodville reached the semifinals in Class 2A, with the first Final Four berth in school history.
"This meant a lot to us to get back to the Elite Eight," Ross said. "We've put in a lot of work to get to this point. Pelham came back today after we had a big lead early, but we know basketball is a game of runs. We regrouped, made some adjustments and closed it out strong."
Johnson 78, Crisp County 54
Johnson, which entered the playoffs ranked No. 1 among Class 3A teams in the state by Sandysspiel.com, rolled to a win over visiting Crisp County to advance to the Elite Eight.
Antonio Bakers had 24 points, six assists and six rebounds for Johnson and Joshua Quarterman had 24 points and six boards. Malachi Robinson added 15 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and three steals, while Favion Kirkwood chipped in with seven boards and seven points.
The Atom Smashers improved to 25-4 on the year and will host Sandy Creek (23-6) on Wednesday at 6 p.m.
Windsor Forest 72, Central-Macon 53
The Knights advanced to the Class 2A Elite Eight win a convincing win at home. Windsor Forest improved to 23-6 on the year and is set to host Columbia (29-1) on Wednesday, March 1, at 6 p.m.
Ahmad Grovener and Landon Page were shooting lights out from distance to lead the Knights. Grovener had five treys and 17 points, Page had four 3-pointers and 18 points and Qurahn Anderson added nine for Windsor Forest.
Brandon Ashley led Central with 15 points.
Swainsboro 57, Savannah High 54
Lamelo Lewis scored a game-high 18 points and Jakari Nobles added 10 to lead Swainsboro.
Sophomore Maki Joyner led Savannah High with 15 points. The Blue Jackets finished the season with a 21-8 record.
GIAA Playoffs
Memorial Day 62, Thomas Jefferson 22
The Matadors rolled to a win in Macon to advance to the GIAA Class A state semifinals.
Matas Aidietis had 11 points and Zsolt Boros and Assir Best scored nine points each for the Matadors, who improved to 19-4.
Memorial Day is set to face First Presbyterian of Hinesville Thursday, March 2, and the University of West Georgia with tipoff set for 4:30 p.m.
St. Andrew's 57, Lakeview Academy 37
The defending champion Lion squad had another impressive victory in Macon and advanced to the GIAA Class 3A semifinals.
The Lions improved to 26-1 on the year and will face Dominion Christian (20-7) in Final Four matchup set for Thursday, March 2, at the University of West Georgia at 7:30 p.m.
Girls Basketball playoffs
Calvary Day basketball coach Jackie Hamilton watched intently as his girls battled against a tough Peach County team Friday night as the Trojans led through most of the game behind their rebounding and ability to get after loose balls.
But Hannah Cail and her Cavalier teammates didn't want to see their season, and Hamilton's coaching career, end on their home court in the second round of the Class 3A playoffs. With Cail, the Georgia College & State signee, leading the way -- the Cavs rallied from a five point deficit after three quarters to beat Peach County 57-49.
Calvary took its first lead of the game when Cail weaved through heavy traffic to convert a layup with 4:21 left as the Cavs went up 44-43. Cail drove to the basket to score again minutes later, then made a nice pass to Destini Gooddine, who knocked down a huge 3-pointer from the right wing to take a 52-47 lead with 40 seconds left -- and the Cavs were able to close it out.
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Hamilton recently announced this would be his last season, after 18 years leading the program at his alma mater, but he said he wasn't thinking about that during crunch time.
"It was a struggle tonight, but I didn't think about it (possibly) being my last game down the stretch," said Hamilton, 59. "I was just trying to stay focused on the next play. That's what we tell the girls to do, so I was just trying to follow my own advice."
Cail scored 23 points for the Cavs and sophomore Bre Jones scored 12. Freshman Molly Smith hit three big treys for nine points and Gooddine added six points for the Cavs, who improved to 23-6 on the season. Calvary Day is set to host Dawson County (16-14) on Tuesday, Feb. 28, at 6 p.m.
The Tigers, a No. 3 seed out of Region 3-7A, beat Hart County in the first round before a dominating 58-37 win over Adairsville, which upset No. 1 seed Sandy Creek in the first round.
Hamilton led the Cavs to a Class A State title in 2008 and Calvary has reached the Final Four four times since, the last coming in 2019. For Cail, reaching the Elite Eight for the first time in her career meant a lot, and she said the fact it could have been the last game for her and coach Hamilton was in the back of her mind.
"It was a crazy feeling, I definitely had a lot more nerves at the start because I knew it could be our last game," Cail said. "But we fought hard and found a way to win it. Coach Hamilton has been my coach for such a long time, we just want to keep the season going as long as we can."
Woodville-Tompkins 67, Dublin 34
The Wolverine girls rolled to a win over visiting Dublin as Woodville advanced to the Class A Division I Elite Eight.
Junior center Brianna Pelote had a huge night for the Wolverines with a triple double as she had 19 points with 13 rebounds and 10 blocked shots. Sanai Chisholm had 24 points and Janiyah Heyward almost had a triple double of her own with 13 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists and six steals for the Wolverines, who improved to 23-5 on the season.
Woodville is set to host Oglethorpe County, a No. 1 seed out of Region 5A Division I, on Tuesday at 6 p.m. The Patriots are 20-8 on the season.
Bradwell 66, Decatur 42
The Tigers won in impressive fashion at Decatur, a No. 1 seed, to advance to the Class 5A Elite Eight.
Bradwell (23-4) will be on the road again to face Kell (23-5) in a quarterfinal matchup set for Tuesday at 6 p.m.
or Wednesday at a time to be announced.
Mary Persons 47, Liberty County 43
The Panthers saw their season come to a end in a road loss to Mary Persons, a No. 1 seed out of Region 2-3A. Liberty County, which finished second in the Region 3-3A tournament, finished its season with a 19-9 record.
Dennis Knight covers sports for the Savannah Morning News. Contact him at Dknight@savannahnow.com. Twitter: @DennisKnightSMN
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Benedictine and Calvary girls among six Savannah schools in Elite Eight
