Three years ago, Central Gwinnett’s best basketball player, Richard Howell, transferred to Wheeler in Marietta because he didn’t feel Central gave him the national exposure he wanted.
Howell won a state championship with Wheeler and signed with Wake Forest.
On Wednesday, Central Gwinnett got some exposure of its own – stunning Wheeler 69-64 and reaching the state quarterfinals for the first time in eight years. Coach David Allen, who has put Central in the state playoffs each of the past four seasons, downplayed what many Central fans had in the back of their minds.
‘’Some other people have talked about that and everybody has their own opinion, but that had no bearing on how we approached this game,’’ Allen said of vindication. "I don’t blame a kid for doing what’s best for him. But this season has been a huge lift for our program and our community for our kids to compete the way we’ve done this year. It says a lot about our kids’ character, the ones that are here.’’
Central remains a program without high-profile players or national prominence, but the Black Knights are 28-2 and poised for a run at their first state title since 1962. They will play McEachern of Powder Springs in the Class AAAAA quarters in Carrollton on Saturday.
Central’s top guns are sophomore Jordan Adams – the team’s tallest player at 6-foot-5 – and senior point guard Brian Williams. Each averages about 17 points per game. The two together scored 44 in the upset of Wheeler.
‘’We’re going through a cycle of good players right now,’’ Allen said. "I’m not na
ïve enough to think great players don’t make good coaches. They’re underrated a little bit because we haven’t been in the limelight.’’
Wheeler, led by Memphis signee Jelan Kendrick, who scored 24 points against Central, played on the road due to getting the No. 3 seed from Georgia’s toughest region, 6-AAAAA, but led 46-36 with 3:12 left in the third quarter.
Central persevered and took a rare lead midway in the fourth. After several more lead changes, Central was on top 64-62 when in the final minute when Ayo Madamidola, a 5-10 guard, made a steal near midcourt and scored on a layup for a 66-62 lead with 19 seconds left. With that, Wheeler was done. A program with four state titles in the past 10 seasons is out in the second round.
‘’We played from behind all night,’’ Allen said. "Then when we took the lead, we started playing with more poise and confidence. I thought we played good defense, and even though we were out-sized, we out-rebounded them. That’s just heart.’’
