This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Schools

Late 3-Pointer Buries Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill loses to Cass 59-58 in the state playoffs.

The final 10 seconds of Saturday's first-round AAAA state tournament game between Cass and were so intense that Panther coach Lee Wilson "almost had a heart attack." Wilson's counterpart at Cass, Greg Scott, says he didn't exhale until he got to the locker room.

With 9.7 seconds left in the game and his team trailing 58-56, Cass' Sam Taylor drilled a 3-pointer to give the Colonels the lead, but the drama didn't stop there. Chapel Hill then got off three potential game-winning shots in the game's final five seconds, including two tips. But none went in, and Cass escaped Chapel Hill with a 59-58 victory.

"It's March madness in February," Scott said.

Find out what's happening in Douglasvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

And madness it was. Chapel Hill was down 11 in the fourth quarter, and the game looked to be all but over. But the Panthers stunned Cass with an 11-0 run over 1:43 that tied the game at 48. Eric Gooden and Jordan Jacks combined to score eight of the 11 points for the Panthers.

With 33 seconds left in the game and the teams tied at 56, Gooden made a steal at midcourt and turned it into a monster dunk that gave the Panthers a 58-56 lead, their only lead of the second half.

Find out what's happening in Douglasvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

That play set up Taylor's late-game heroics.

The Colonels' win wouldn't have been possible without Jay Stephens. The senior guard exploded for a game-high 26 points.

"He's got a gear that some others don't have," Scott said of Stephens. "He had a phenomenal game."

The trio of Jacks, Gooden and senior Tevin Parker led Chapel Hill. Parker ended his high school career with a 21-point performance, and Jacks and Gooden each acored 16 points.

Cass advances to the second round of the AAAA state tournament. The Colonels will travel to Conyers on Wednesday to play Rockdale County, the No. 1 seed out of Region 8-AAAA.Β 

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?