Looking Ahead: No.1 v. No. 2 Showdown in Hickory Flat in the Sweet 16

The War Lodge was rocking in front of a packed house 90 minutes before the teams took the floor for warm ups. In yet another historic first, the No.1 ranked Sequoyah Chiefs hosted a state playoff game. They were also looking for the team’s first ever win in the tournament in only their second attempt in the program’s 20-year history.

Saturday night was the first step in the quest for the state championship and the opponent was Lithia Springs from Region 5. In only two previous meetings between the two schools, Lithia Springs was the overwhelming favorite and handily dispatched the Chiefs. The seniors on this year’s squad were playing on the team as freshmen and sophomores and perhaps were not only focused on the task at hand, but were not about to see a shot at playing Miller Grove slip through their fingers on their home floor. There was no let down, no looking past this opponent and certainly no holding back.

The first quarter saw both teams trade shots and take the full eight minutes to settle down and start playing the kind of basketball that landed them both into the state tournament. The first quarter ended with four players on each team making one basket. The only difference was a lone free throw by senior Sean Tate, making the score after one period 9-8 in the Chiefs favor. The second quarter opened with the only made three-point shot in the game for Sequoyah, but the story was the second chance points by Sequoyah I the paint, as Sequoyah had eight offensive rebounds and built a 28-24 lead going into halftime.

As the second half began, Sequoyah decided to change things up a bit. Rather than letting teams get back in the game and take a lead, Sequoyah decided to swarming defense pass with precision, racking up assist after assist and outscore Lithia Springs 19-10 in the quarter. The quarter got started with a trapping defense that produced a long rebound early in the quarter. The play that completely broke the will of the visiting lions began with a jump shot by the Lithia Springs point guard that missed the mark. Sequoyah’s Zack Chandler tipped the ball out long to Brandon Alexander who threw a no-look, over-the-shoulder pass to a streaking Sean Tate for a lay-up and foul on the play. The roar of appreciation from the crowd was deafening. If you looked close, you could even see the Miller Grove coaches applauding the effort. Ninety seconds later, the exclamation point was added when Cullen Roberts found Brandon Alexander in the lane for a two-handed slam that just left the visitors shaking their heads and looking for the bus to take them home. The momentum of the game had completely swung in the direction of Sequoyah and the state’s No.1 team embraced the energy the capacity crowd provided as they finished the game by outscoring the Lions 51-24 over the final two and a half quarters.

As has been the case all year long, the state’s leading scorer in Sean Tate was led Sequoyah with 28 points, going 15 of 17 form the free throw line. Equally impressive were his five assists. Another senior, Zack Chandler was five of eight from the floor, ending with 12 points and six rebounds. Brandon Alexander had another big night in a big game with 10 points, 15 rebounds, four steals, three blocks and the best assist of the game. Coming off a broken foot, fellow senior Cullen Roberts was everywhere on the floor. He scored nine points, had 11 rebounds, a blocked shot and caused at least a dozen turnovers. The team finished with 41 rebounds, caused 21 turnovers and 20 assists on the night.

For the first time in school history, Sequoyah is playing in the Sweet Sixteen as they host No.2 Miller Grove on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. It is a shame that Miller Grove lost their region title game causing them to be the No.2 seed out of Region 6. This is the match up everyone wants to see. It is just too bad that it has to happen in the second round of the playoffs. It looks like the state championship will run through Hickory Flat.

With as many as 50 division 1 coaches expected in attendance at the game on Wednesday, you will want to get there early for a seat. The gym has a maximum capacity of 2,000 and gates open at least an hour before tip-off.