5A has been a blast to follow. Jones County has been knocking off top seeds as the No. 4 seed, Kell and Eagle’s Landing have been dominant, and Chapel Hill is continuing to prove that it’s a sleeper to be a disruptor in the final four. 

Will we get the heavyweight battle between Eagle’s Landing and Kell? Will Jones County continue to play spoiler? Will Chapel Hill make a statement by taking out Kell?

Any outcome will generate points of discussion ahead of the 5A championship game. 

Jones County vs Eagle’s Landing 

Jaylen Sanford and Jones County have been one of the stories of the tournament. The Greyhounds were off to the races as soon as the tournament gates opened. Knocking off Bradwell Institute and Tucker were great wins, but their win on the road against a scorching-hot Hiram team put the state on notice. 

Eagle’s Landing has been one of the state’s dominant teams. Regardless of class, they’ve been operating among the elites all season. They have one loss, and most of their games haven’t been close. David Thomas is closing out his high school career on the highest of notes. During the tournament, the Eagles have won their games by an average of 28.6 points per game. 

JT’s pick: Should I ride the hot hand and pick Jones County? Jaylen Sanford has been driving this final four run, but at the end of the day, Eagle’s Landing has to be the pick. There has been nothing to provide any reason to pick against them at this point. They’re having a special season.  

Chapel Hill vs Kell

Chapel Hill feels like they’ve been going under the radar during the playoffs, but the Panthers have been outstanding. Kelvin Hunter is one of the better big men left in the field, and Oray Towns and Khirus Doucet make up a tremendous backcourt. This is a tough team that absolutely has a chance to derail Kell’s train to Macon. 

Kell has been the best team in 5A all season. They’ve faced a gauntlet of a schedule that is unrivaled by anyone else in the classification, and they’ve only lost twice all season. Their only in-state loss came on the road against Grayson in overtime. They’ve beaten some of the state’s powers throughout the year as well. In the 5A tournament, they’ve won their games by an average of 24.3 points per game. 

JT’s pick: Kell has won all of their tournament games by double digits like Eagle’s Landing. While Chapel Hill can certainly win this game, it feels like we’re destined to get the battle between Kell and Eagle’s Landing for the 5A championship, and I’m not one to stand in the way of destiny.