#MarchToMacon: Jonesboro takes home AAAA title
MACON, GA – There was some history made on Thursday night in the GHSA state championship year. Justin Young and Robert Alfonso, Jr. breakdown what they learned the most from this game.
Sports’ is a game of momentum.Both teams had an opportunity to really get into a groove once their teams started getting loose. Jonesboro finished the first half on a 12-2 run for an early lead heading into halftime. Columbia responded with its own run in the third quarter when it finished the third quarter 20-10 to tie the game going into the fourth quarter. - RA
Tracy Hector Jr. makes a name for himself.The junior forward had a solid season for Jonesboro. He was averaging 12 points a game. Early in the year, he was looking for his role and comfort zone on the team. As the season progressed, Hector took advantage of his size in the finals and was around the basket on both ends of the floor. - RA
Free throws matter. Unlike the Class A Public championship game from earlier in the day, Jonesboro was terrific from the foul line in the fourth quarter. The Cardinals were 14 of 16 in the final eight minutes of the biggest game of the year. Calm, cool and collected, the Clayton County kids never once seemed rattled by the stage or the game.
Start the history books. The championship is the first for Jonesboro men's basketball. What an amazing piece of history that is. The school has been home to a lot of talent in years past but never home to a state championship. But they are now. The championship is the first for Clayton County since 1993. - JY
And the children shall leadthem. Jonesboro freshman MJ Walker has been on a tear in the post-season and stepped up big on the foul line when it mattered. Walker, a 6-foot-5 wing, averaged over 20 points a game in the post-season and was the definitive go-to guy for the Cardinals this season. He is the first freshman in nearly 20 years to be the primary option for a state championship team in Georgia. - JY