Class 1A, 2A and 3A State Championships
Prep Hoops takes a look Class 1A, 2A and 3A in this article. The high school season came to a official end on Saturday night in Columbia.
Class 1A : Hemingway 71 Ridge Spring-Monetta 59
The Tigers have won back to back state championships. The Tigers (20-6) were led in scoring by Darius “JuJu” Williams with 21 points and 16 rebounds. Class 1A State Player of the Year Darius Taylor added 16 points. Williams and Taylor will both be back next season as seniors.
Jerry Tyler (2019) led Ridge Spring-Monetta (21-6) with 20 points. Tyler shot (8-22) from the floor for he Trojans. Melvin Alewine a Newberry football signee finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Johnnie Freeman added 11 points and senior Tyson Bettis capped off his career with 8 points.
The Trojans hadn’t made a trip to the State Championship since 1955
Class 2A : Gray Collegiate 58 Carvers Bay 45
The War Eagles (25-4) capped of a great season defeating the Bears practically on their home floor. Tommy Bruner (2019) led the way with 20 points. Juwan Gary scored 13 points and grabbed 8 rebounds while Ty Rivers was a pleasant surprise with 10 points and 5 rebounds. Post player Mike Marsh finished his career with 6 points and 15 rebounds.
The Bears finished the season at (24-3) under Head Coach Jeff Mezzatesta. The Bears were led by senior small forward Dijon Goss with 17 points. Stephon Greene (2019) recorded a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds in the loss.
Class 3A : Greenville Southside 74 Ridgeland-Hardeeville 58
The Southside Tigers prevailed to win back to back state championships. RJ Campbell (2019) finished with 20 points and 8 rebounds in the win. Jamal Burke (2018) 6’10 post player continued his hot play with 15 points and 21 rebounds while Jayden Shell added 12 points and Jalon Calhoun mustered 11 points.
The Tigers had won back to back state championships was back in 2008-2009 seasons. Tuzion Brock was in foul trouble with 4 second quarter fouls and finished the game with just 4 points. The Tigers are (50-3) over the past 2 seasons.
The Jaguars finished the season at (23-2). Devin Butler led the way with 20 points while Rashamel Butler finished with 14 points.