The end of the road is finally here. The Georgia Cup Finals is the last installment of the Georgia Cup series which has been a blast and both wildly entertaining and competitive. Saturday morning at Collins Hill supplied those in attendance with some nailbiters in the 12U division.

TNBC Select 2022 earned a hard fought 55-50 win over 12U Georgia Jazz. The Jazz had a chance to tie the game with 10 seconds left, but a three-pointer fell short and they were forced to foul Buck Hall. Hall dazzled fans with his smooth handles, putting defenders on skates all game long. He finished with eight points and even received praise from the Jazz crowd, parents coming up and shaking his hand after the game giving him the nickname “The Professor”. Kenny Orr tossed in 18 points to lead TNBC.

There was another fantastic finish in the 12U bracket as Hoops360 Howard held off Atlanta TapOut and Josh Woolfolk’s 12 points, 38-36 as a TapOut last second heave didn’t fall.

The most impressive 12U player I saw was Mali Dooley (pictured) of the Currahee Defenders. The Defenders held a 25-14 lead over the Forsyth Longhorns at halftime, but a 17-5 run gave the Longhorns a narrow edge. Dooley and the Defenders could have easily folded against the Longhorn press but instead Dooley took over, pouring in 18 of his game-high 31 points in the second half to carry Currahee to a 56-50 win. Dooley, who looks like an integral part for the future of Habersham basketball, used expert body control to get into the paint and finish through defenders. In the loss, Matthew Whiche, AJ McIlwain and Carson Bell all played well with Whiche breaking out some impressive up-and-under moves in the fourth quarter.

17U

The Atlanta Warriors turned a 5-point halftime lead into an 80-64 blowout of Sports Academy South. BJ Millard was mighty impressive inside, scoring 18 of his 24 points in the first half. The senior out of Dunwoody averaged 16 points and 7.9 rebounds his final season as a Wildcat. A mobile 6-foot-5 power forward, Millard is a hard worker in the paint with nice athleticism to boot. Musa Thompson netted a game-high 24 points as well for the Warriors, a team loaded with Lambert Longhorns. Thompson has nice size as a long 6-foot-4 wing and should see a major increase in production his senior season.

Reach Higher Kings rode Hank Blain’s big second half to a 61-58 win over Active Elite. Blain, a Class of 2017 guard out of King’s Ridge Christian, doesn’t look like much at first glance, but his low to the ground build with strong shoulders helps him sneak past defenders and finish in the lane. He scored 16 of his game-high 21 points in the second half while Austin Panks added 14.

Riverwood Varsity

Riverwood High School coming off of a record-setting season in which they finished 29-2 with an Elite Eight appearance, took to the Georgia Cup to kick off their summer season. Life without Kohl Roberts (GCSU) went well as the Raiders earned a 56-50 win over The Unit.

The Raiders started off slow before Elijah Jenkins caught fire quickly, hitting four threes in the second quarter, sending the game to the half tied at 30. Riverwood used a 7-0 run to open the second half to gain separation and extended its lead to 50-37 in the fourth quarter before The Unit took advantage of the Raiders sleeping at the wheel.

In the end, it was too little too late however for The Unit who was led by Roswell football standout Tyneil Hooper. Hooper, like the name, did just that – hooped. The powerful forward collected 17 points, five rebounds, three assists and one steal. Riverwood used a balanced attack led by Jenkins’ 16. Nassir Mohammed, a rising junior who sprouted six inches over the past year to 6-foot-6, added 10 points and five rebounds. Charnchai Chantha, Amir Smith and Christian Sutton all chipped in eight points apiece.