The March to Macon has seen shake ups across its eight brackets through two rounds of play this far. 

Upsets, blue blood greatness, standout performances, historic runs, these playoffs have been as fun to follow as any within the last few seasons. 

Here are some notes of intrigue from the weekend’s action. 

4A tournament opens up

However, Saturday was particularly remarkable in one classification.  

The 4A bracket saw two of the favorites bounced with Pace Academy and McDonough losing their second-round games. 

Holy Innocents’ toppled Pace—a perennial favorite in the state championship race—thanks to 27 points from sophomore guard Devin Hutcherson and a full statline from five-star junior Caleb Wilson who finished with 19 points, 21 rebounds, 7 assists, and 5 blocks. 

With the high-end talent on Holy Innocents’, the win is less a surprise than coronation. The Golden Bears have emerged from being an inexperienced but talented team to a team with a viable chance of winning a state championship. 

The more surprising of the outcomes was Westminster ending McDonough’s season. The Wildcats are in their first season under head coach Matt Hixenbaugh, who came over from Mount Pisgah, and they have immediately made it further in the tournament than most if not all other Westminster teams in recent memory. 

Now that two favorites have been knocked off, Holy Innocents’ and North Oconee emerge as the teams to beat in 4A. 

If the second round taught us anything, it’s that 4A is as up in the air as any other classification. 

Big brands advance in 7A

7A has seen some of the state’s biggest names advance to the elite eight. 

Grayson, McEachern, Milton, Norcross, Pebblebrook and Wheeler make up six of the eight teams remaining in 7A. Those are among the most nationally recognized programs in Georgia. 

Those are some of the programs that national writers first check in on when looking for talent they might not be aware of. 

It’s not a surprise to see Grayson, McEachern and Wheeler in this position. They have been operating as three of the better teams in the state all season.

Milton has also been one of the more dangerous teams in Georgia. They aren’t as dominant as some of the Eagles teams in the recent past, but they’ve proven that they can beat anyone on a given night. 

The interesting ones are Norcross (17-13) and Pebblebrook (13-16) who have had down seasons by their standards. 

For each, tough scheduling and early adversity seems to have paid off.

Campbell and Peachtree Ridge are no slouches either. Both of those programs have had plenty of highlights in their history as well and are well-regarded among Peach State hoop heads. 

Woodstock history?

Woodstock is in the elite eight. Going back throughout the GHSA tournament brackets that are available on their site (2009-2010 season being the oldest available) will show that Woodstock has only advanced in the state tournament once prior to this season, and now the Wolverines have made what appears to be their first elite eight. 

Someone please correct me if I’m wrong. 

With that in mind, one has to wonder whether this is the best season in the program’s history. It certainly feels like it. 

New head coach Eric Blair has done wonders after assuming the helm. 

Seniors Jamier Nowell and Quentin Rakestraw have had tremendous seasons while freshman Taj Saragba continues to establish himself as a name that could spend the next three years operating toward the top of Georgia player rankings. 

A spring riser closes winter on a high note

This past spring 2024 F Blake Wilson broke out and made his way onto college radars. 

Now, he’s ending his high school career on a high note with Hebron Christian by leading them on a run in the 3A tournament that has seen two of Georgia’s most intriguing prospects in the way. 

An opening-round win over Cedar Grove saw Wilson and the Lions pitted against sophomore Manny Green, and the second-round faced them with 7-foot junior Jackson McVey. 

Wilson put up 22 points and 11 rebounds against Cedar Grove and 28 points and 7 rebounds against McVey’s Gilmer squad. 

What he showed starting in the spring is manifesting at the right time for Hebron Christian.