VALDOSTA — By Ed Hooper

The Valdosta Daily Times

VALDOSTA — The Seventh Annual Randall Godfrey Christmas Classic finished off with six games on Tuesday at Lowndes High School. The Allatoona girls defeated Ware County in the opening game, followed by the Coffee girls defeating Brunswick. The Ware County boys defeated Coffee.



Lowndes boys 52,

Lanier County 51



VALDOSTA — Justin Williams needed to convert just one of his two fouls shots to give his Lowndes Vikings a slim one-point lead with two seconds remaining on Tuesday night.

With the crowd on its feet, Williams’ first attempt was no good. His second attempt added to the drama, rolling around the rim before falling into the basket to give Lowndes the 52-51 lead over the Lanier County Bulldogs.

Following Williams’ go-ahead free throw, time ran out on the Bulldogs before they could get off a last second game-winning shot. Following the buzzer, the Vikings rushed the court to celebrate their victory over the Bulldogs.

“I told (Justin) that he all he had to do was make one (foul shot),” Lowndes head coach Kingston Clark said. “Then I told him that because (Lanier County) didn’t have any timeouts that he could miss one, and he said ‘no coach I am going to make both of them.’ So, when the first one came off, I said ‘Oh, lord. Please let this next one go in.’ Then you see it rolling around and around. But, I had confidence in Justin because he is one of our best free throw shooters.”

Williams’ free throws came after Lanier County’s Malik Kone nailed a jumper with 12 seconds remaining to even the game at 51-51. Quickly in transition, Williams drove the floor, only to be fouled by the Bulldogs, which led to his game winning-foul shot.

“We just stepped up and played a tremendous ball game, overall,” Clark said. “Heart paid off because the kids never gave us. We hung in there and we were determined to win.”

Lowndes’ victory on Tuesday night came less than a month after an embarrassing 70-54 defeat to the Class A Bulldogs, something that Clark said fueled his team Tuesday night.

“When (Lanier County) came in here for the Thanksgiving tournament, we were embarrassed by the way they beat us,” Clark said. “So, we were determined to make a difference. The schedule was changed so we could get a revenge game against Ware County and also against Lanier County. Win, lose or draw, we wanted a second chance for revenge.”

Justin Williams led the Vikings on the night, recording a team-high 16 points, while Caleb Austin and Josh Cooper each added 11 points.

For Lanier County, Emmanuel Ezuoa and Junior Gnonknde were mostly held in check. Ezuoa led the Bulldogs in scoring with 17 points, but was held to just five points in the second half. Gnonknde finished the night with just nine points in the loss.

The Vikings were hot early, jumping out to a 13-3 lead, only to see the Bulldogs close the gap behind nine opening quarter points from Ezuoa.

Leading 16-13 heading into the second quarter, the Vikings extended their lead into double digits, building a 32-22 halftime advantage behind 12 first half points from Williams. The Vikings were also aided by tough defense down low, holding Gnonknde to just three first half points.

Following halftime, the Vikings fell cold shooting, giving way to a Lanier County run. In the third quarter, the Bulldogs were able to outscore the Vikings 14-7, closing the quarter on a 9-1 run. The strong finish to the quarter put the Bulldogs into striking position, trailing by just three points heading into the fourth quarter.

In the fourth quarter, each team led, although Lowndes led the majority of the way. The game was tied on three separate occasions in the quarter.

Lowndes returns to action Dec. 27 when they take on the fourth-ranked Mill Creek Hawks in Tifton.



Lowndes girls 39, Ga. Military Prep 12



VALDOSTA — The Lowndes Vikettes stayed undefeated Tuesday, improving their record to 11-0 behind 39-12 victory over the Georgia Military Prep Lady Bulldogs 39-12.

Despite posting a season-low 39 points, the Vikettes were never in trouble thanks to a suffocating defense that gave the Lady Bulldogs fits throughout the entire game.

“It was a good defensive effort,” Lowndes head coach Shan Garner said. “Our kids have the tendency sometimes to play to the level of their competition on the offensive end. I think we were tied. It looked like we slept walked through most of the game.”

For the second time this season, the Vikettes posted a shutout in the first quarter, while jumping out in front 9-0 behind four points from Courtne Washington.

Lowndes continued a run into the second quarter, as Washington added four more points to lead Lowndes out to a 22-3 halftime lead. The Vikettes managed to hold Georgia Military Prep without a field goal until the 4:20 mark of the second quarter. The field goal was the only one allowed by the Vikettes in the first half.

“The effort was good,” Garner said. “The tournament was good. I am proud of them. Our kids played well.”

Following halftime, the Vikettes continued their dominance, as five Lowndes players scored in the third quarter. Sophomore Tasia Brown led the way in the quarter with four points, while Washington, Natalia Adams, Coretta Hadin and Danyelle Jones each contributed in the quarter. Behind the offense from the five, and the dominating defense, the Vikettes outscored GMC 11-3 in the quarter, building a 33-8 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.

Due to fatigue, the Vikettes featured multiple lineups in the fourth quarter, allowing Garner to give bench players time on the floor.

“We had some kids come off the bench that we are going to be able to us,” Garner said. “We are trying to establish our rotation for region play.”

On the night, Courtne Washington was the only player to finish in double figures, leading the way with 11 points. Tasia Brown added nine points in the win, while Danyelle Jones finished the game with seven points.

The Vikettes return to action Dec. 27 when they take on the Mill Creek Lady Hawks in Tifton. Tipoff is set for 11:30 a.m.

“We have a real test coming in Mill Creek coming up in Tifton,” Garner said. “It is going to be a real nice test. We are going to take a few days off and spend the next couple getting ready and go from there.”



Valdosta boys 88, Randolph-Clay 65



VALDOSTA —The Valdosta Wildcats boys basketball team followed up Monday night’s loss to Lanier County with an 88-65 thrashing of Randolph-Clay on Tuesday afternoon.

“We will take a win anyway we can get it,” Valdosta head coach Antonio Haynes said. “They were still holding their holds after the loss last night, and that was my job to get them compared to forget it and come out and play.”

Despite falling behind early, the Wildcats caught fire, building a 21-15 first quarter lead, which quickly turned into a 20-point halftime lead.

“We switched defenses,” Haynes said about the first half success. “That slowed down (Randolph-Clay) and that allowed us to get our hands on some balls and make some shots.”

Led by the play of Terrance Foster, who recorded a game-high 22 points, and Dominique Bullock, who added 21 points in the win, the Wildcats continued their dominance into the second half.

Valdosta’s Clarence Smith, who leads the team in scoring on the season, recorded just six points on the afternoon, sitting on the bench through the entire second quarter because of early foul trouble.

“When Clarence went to the bench, we switched Terrance to the two and Dominique to the three,” Haynes said. “And those two guys play hard all the time.”

Following the game, Haynes said his team has become comfortable playing at Lowndes High School, considering they have participated in both the Charles Cooper Tournament over Thanksgiving and the Randall Godfrey Tournament this week, posting a 4-1 record across the five games.

“I am not sure what it is about this gym, but they shoot pretty well over here,” Haynes said. “We love playing here. It is easy travel and we don’t have to put as much strain on us traveling. I think the kids enjoy playing in Valdosta, in front of all their family and friends.”