By Thomas Grant Jr.
The last time Ridge View faced Grayson (Ga.) this season, it was for the Chick-Fil-A Classic American Division title at River Bluff High School.
The Blazers came away with the 58-53 victory over the Rams in The Swamp.
On Thursday, the two teams met in tournament play again in another “swamp”. They were playing in the quarterfinals of The Throne National Championship tournament at American Dream in East Rutherford, N.J.
This time, the Blazers fell to the Rams 83-61 in the quarterfinals. Jacob Wilkins, the son of NBA Hall of Fame forward Dominique Wilkins, posted a double-double with 18 points and 14 rebounds.
He scored 12 points in the third quarter when Grayson (32-2) pulled away from Ridge View. This included a pair of slam dunks, including a one-handed breakaway somewhat reminiscent of his father.
Wilkins was one of five players in double figures for the Rams. They also had 25 assists as a team, nine by Christian Hyland, and outrebounded Ridge View 29-17.
Meanwhile, Korie Corbett led the Blazers with 14 points, Yale Davis and Jayden Pretty each finished with10 points and Malachi Cooper added nine.
Ridge View answered a game-opening layup by Anthony Alston, who had 14 points, with back-to-back 3-pointers by Cooper and Davis to take a 6-2 lead. The Rams responded with eight straight points during an 11-0 run in which it utilized its size advantage with Wilkins and center Amir Taylor, who finished with 16 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
The Blazers looked to rally in the second quarter behind Corbett, who scored seven points. They got within six points with 2:23 left before halftime when Grayson scored six unanswered points to go up 43-31 at halftime.
Up 66-52 after the third quarter, the Rams took their biggest lead of 23 points in the fourth quarter. They outscored Ridge View 17-9 in the final stanza for their 17h straight win.
The Class 4A champion Blazers end the season with a 29-3 record under second-year head coach Josh Staley.
