Miller Grove and St. Francis were paired in what was one of the best regular season games of the year in Georgia on Saturday afternoon. The two teams played in an instant classic last year and a rematch had been circled on the calendar for a long time by teams and fans alike since the game was scheduled.

With a packed house watching, the game tipped off and the energy was riding high. The two heavyweights were ready for the spotlight match-up.

Back and forth the game went as some of the state's top players were starting to find their rhythm in the contest.

Then everything changed.

St. Francis senior Kaiser Gates stood on the right block as his teammate was shooting a free throw, he put his hands on his knees then to his head. Gates then motioned to the St. Francis bench that he needed to be subbed out of the game. Shortly after, he stumbled back after the made shot and tried to run back on defense. His knees buckled at mid court and tried to run some more only to then fall on his back and lay motionless in the corner of playing court.

It was a scary moment to say the least. The gym fell quiet as a trainer and coaches from both staffs gathered around him. Gates came around, to the relief of everyone that witnessed the incident. He was taken to the locker room where he was examined by paramedics and an emergency room nurse who was in attendance. Gates checked out fine.

He returned to the St. Francis bench. After the game, Gates went to Emory University's hospital for further exams. Possible heat exhaustion was one of the possible causes, according to the family.

The incident came at 3:55 in the first quarter in a two-point game. To expect St. Francis to mentally recover from such a scene was hard to fathom.

The defending Class A private school team never found their rhythm and understandably so. Even Miller Grove players and coaches said it was hard to get back into game mode.

"Anytime an individual, and even a friend of mine, falls like that, it shakes the whole gym," Miller Grove junior Alterique Gilbert said. "We came together as a gym and prayed. We are very thankful that he's alright."

The Wolverines lost Terrell Coleman, who collapsed and passed away last summer in a game.

"We've been on the other side of that," Miller Grove head coach Sharman White said. "It's scary. Our guys went right into praying and we told the guys that Kaiser is going to be fine. We prayed about it and found some comfort in that but we knew that we had to finish the ball game as hard as something like that."

Miller Grove won 66-43. Lamont West scored 22 while Gilbert scored 18. Kobi Simmons had a team high 18 points for St. Francis.