McEachern Captures Class 7A Title
Altanta, Georgia – The 2018-2019 Georgia high school basketball season is finally over and what a year it has been for the peach state. The 2018-2019 class 7A state champions are no other than the McEachern Indians out of Powder…
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Continue ReadingAltanta, Georgia – The 2018-2019 Georgia high school basketball season is finally over and what a year it has been for the peach state. The 2018-2019 class 7A state champions are no other than the McEachern Indians out of Powder Springs, Georgia in Cobb County. The Indians are the first team from Cobb County, Georgia to bring home the state title since Wheeler High School with star forward Jaylen Brown (Boston Celtics) in 2015.
The Indians were led by their superstar point guard 2020 Sharife Cooper with 20 points. Auburn commit 2019 F Isaac Okoro finished the game with 16 points to help the Indians surpass Meadowcreek, who were coming in as the defending state champions. All season long Meadowcreek High School wanted their chance against McEachern High School. The Mustangs felt like they were the best team in the state and wanted to prove themselves against the nations number one team in most polls.
The game started off slow at first but picked up just a couple minutes in. Sharife Cooper started the game off to a hot start hitting a couple three pointers and dishing out assist. The Indians led 18-15 after one quarter and kept their foot on the gas in the second. 2019 PG Quinton McElroy of McEachern caught foul trouble early, and also Temple commit 2019 SG Damian Dunn of Meadowcreek, picking up three fouls before the half.
South Florida commit 2019 F Jamir Chaplin really kept the Mustangs in the game in the first half even though they were down by 10 at halftime. UAB commit 2019 PG Jalen Benjamin was basically a no-show and was also in foul trouble throughout the game as well. As the third quarter began, Sharife Cooper of McEachern picked up his fourth foul and was forced to sit out for half of the quarter and just a bit of the fourth.
Once Cooper went out, Okoro and 2019 G Alyn Breed of McEachern went to work and kept the Indians on top. The game did not really get into rhythm at all with all the foul calls. The game was very physical and both squads were not backing down from one another. Meadowcreek actually caught some momentum in the fourth quarter to rally back from their deficit after a big three point basketball by Jalen Benjamin, which cut the lead to 51-47.
But then it was time for Sharife Cooper to make his presence and put the icing on the cake for the Indians. Once Cooper set foot back on the floor, McEachern took a huge lead and was eventually back up 59-49 with just under one minute remaining. The Indians were able to ice the game with a couple free throws by Cooper, giving them the 62-54 victory over the class 7A defending champions in Meadowcreek and pushing their overall record to 32-0.
What is next for McEachern? Head Coach Mike Thompson and his squad are likely to make their debut in the 2019 GEICO Nationals in New York, New York on April 4-6th. The Indians will be the number one or two seed in the eight team field and will face powerhouses including IMG Academy (FL), Montverde Academy (FL), Oak Hill Academy (VA), La Lumiere (IN), and others. Coach Thompson has already said he has signed the contract and the Indians are for sure going. They will be the first Georgia team to represent in the GEICO Nationals since 2016 where Miller Grove High School out of Lithonia, Georgia made their debut.