Pebblebrook coach George Washington knew his team had to be the toughest one on the court to have a chance against a Hillgrove team that had already beaten them three times.
Turns out the unranked Falcons were tougher than a Waffle House steak. They used their aggressive man-to-man defense and endless energy on the boards to stifle No. 4 Hillgrove 70-57 on Saturday in the Class 6A semifinal at the Georgia State Convocation Center.
Pebblebrook advances to its third appearance in the final and are looking for its first state title. The Falcons will play for the championship on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at the Macon Coliseum.
“We had to be the tougher team,” Washington said. “The other three times they were tougher than we were.”
Hillgrove won 72-57 and 73-50 over Pebblebrook in the regular season, then prevailed 66-63 in the Region 3 playoffs, a game the Falcons led in the fourth quarter.
“The last one gave us hope,” Washington said. “And any time you give somebody hope, you can always come out fighting. It gave us fight for this one. The kids weren’t afraid of this one. The last one we competed and because it was competitive, it gave us hope.”
Pebblebrook led 25-21 at halftime and overpowered Hillgrove 22-8 in the third quarter.
“We’ve been telling our guys that you can win a game in the first three minutes of the third quarter,” Washington said. “We came out with energy and effort and won the third quarter. That’s been our M.O. all year. You win the third quarter, you win the game.”
The Falcons expanded the lead to 20 points with 5:37 remaining and spent the rest of the game nursing the clock and being selective with their shots. Often the Falcons would start to run a play but pull the ball out and eat more precious seconds away.
“Last week we talked about the math,” Washington said. “You only have so many possessions, so we just decided to limit their possession by slowing it down and getting layups. We didn’t want to take a shot unless it was a layup.”
Pebblebrook (23-8) had four players in double figures – Jaylen Humphrey with 19, Alexander Jones and Kennesaw State signee Zyree Brown with 16 each, and Donald McMillian with 10.
Hillgrove (23-8) got 19 points from uncommitted four-star prospect Asa Montgomery, but 12 of his points came from the line and his first field goal didn’t come until the fourth quarter. Bryson Jatta scored 14 and Landon Grundy added 11.
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
