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Daphne Adebayo

Georgia State Final Four Report

By Tyrus McBridge
HoopGurlz Southeast Correspondent
Posted Fri, 03/07/2008 - 07:11 A state tournament report from the state of Georgia's 4A and 5A championship semifinals.

Game of the Day

The state’s largest classification, 5A, pitted No. 1 Mill Creek High School (27-1) against No. 3 Stephenson High School (27-3). Mill Creek came into the contest undefeated in Georgia. Its only loss this season came at the hands of Hoover High School (Hoover, Ala.). In the most anticipated matchup of the season it was a battle from start to finish in a game which both teams started slowly and built momentum.

LSU signee Taylor Turnbow, a 6-foot-3 forward ranked No. 55 in the senior class by HoopGurlz.com, turned in one of her most impressive showings of the season with 12 rebounds, nine points and seven blocks, an impress near miss of a triple double while shooting four-of-six from the floor. Her efforts helped lead Stephenson (Stone Mountain, Ga.) to a 66-51 win and a trip the finals Friday night.

Mill Creek (Suwanne, Ga.) and Stephenson ended both the first and second quarters tied, scoring 10 points in each frame. Behind the strong offensive performance of Mill Creek's 5-6 uncommitted senior point guard Portia Porter, and 10 of her 23 points in the third quarter, Mill Creek pulled ahead 42-34. The fourth quarter belonged to Stephenson led by 5-9 guard Jylisa Williams, a Georgia State commit. She poured in 17 of her 20 points in the final frame, capping off a 32-9 run to finish the game on top.


Olivia Towers-Solis (42) was injured in the
first quarter for Mill Creek.

Williams played through an unbelievable amount of contact in the final period of play. "After I was thrown to the floor I knew I had to keep my composure," Williams said. "I knew that we were going to the finals and that they were going home".

Stephenson advances to the championship where they will face Redan High School. Stephenson has met Redan twice this year, winning both games by an average margin of 21 points.

In the first quarter and the third possession of the game Mill Creek suffered the loss of starter Olivia Towers-Solis. The 6-foot junior wing is a major offensive weapon as well as tenacious defender for the top ranked team in Georgia. Towers-Solis would not return to the game

Players of the Day

Alicia Andrews, Redan High School – 2010: The 5-2 point guard scored 28 points in final four action to lift her team over Duluth High School and advance to the Championship game.

Ebony Mitchell, SW Dekalb H.S. – 2008: The 5-7 point guard scored 32 points, dished out 10 assists, and had six steals en route to a victory in the AAAA semifinals.

Daphne Adebayo, Duluth High School – 2009: The 6-1 forward is a scorer that can attack the basket as well as an excellent defender and shot blocker. Odebaya scored 14 points tonight in final four play. She is being courted by numerous large division I schools and will be narrowing choices in the coming weeks after losing the battle to Redan.

Porsha Porter, Mill Creek High School – 2008: The 5-6 point guard scored 23 points tonight in semifinal action. Porter is a deadly perimeter scoring threat with the strong ball handling and defensive skills.

Charenee Stephens, SW Dekalb H.S. – 2008: The 6-1 South Carolina-commit dropped a double-double with 20 points and 20 rebounds against Duluth High School (Duluth, Ga.). To top it off, the ball was stuck in the rim and while coaches, players, referees alike looked up, Stephens went to the rim with both hands and dislodged the ball much to the crowds delight.

Jylisa Williams, Stephenson High School – 2008: The 5-9 shooting guard sealed the deal for Stephenson scoring 17 fourth quarter points and a trip to the finals.

Notes
Championship Matchups:
AAAA - SW Dekalb (29-2) led by Charenee Stephens vs. Fayette County (26-5) - Friday 4PM
AAAAA - Stephenson vs. Redan - Friday 7PM



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Tyrus McBride has played for Muskogee High in Muskogee, Okla.; Connors State College in Warner, Okla., and the Tyndall Air Force Base in Bay County, Fla. He also has officiated at the high-school, NCAA Division II and Division III, NAIA and junior-college levels, and continues to train and schedule officials. Ty has coached with Finest Basketball Club (FBC) Georgia and Collins Hill High School Fall League for two years, and has coached boys and girls in skills development at all levels, and at several Division I college camps across the nation. He can be reached at ty@hoopgurlz.com.


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