By Lee Wilson
MaxPreps.com
The 18th Annual Deep South Classic is the biggest holiday basketball tournament in the Metro-Atlanta area. This year it took on a slightly different format with just 16 teams, eight each in the boys and girls bracket.
While the tournament has always hosted games at Brookwood High School, it has been four years since a Brookwood team has even appeared in the tournament title game. This year the entire tournament was played on the Broncos’ home court, and that advantage – coupled with some clutch free throw shooting – helped the Brookwood boys land the tournament title.
It started in the semifinals where the Broncos faced a tall order – 6-foot-7 to be exact – with senior South Forsyth center Derek Zittraurer.
In the early going the War Eagles dominated the game thanks to the lanky senior, who finished with 22 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks. Brookwood didn't sweat it as freshman Chris Bolden came off the bench to provide a boost in the fourth quarter.
With the game swinging in the balance, Bolden came through in the clutch. Brookwood was up by two, 55-53 with 5.2 seconds to go. After being fouled, the freshman drained two free throws to put the game out of reach and send Brookwood to the final match with Peachtree Ridge, another Gwinnett County team.
Against the Lions it was much of the same for the Broncos. They built a solid lead early and maintained it as the game went on. But the Lions roared back behind the play of Khalid Mutakabbir.
Mutakabbir missed his first shot of the game, and he did not miss again until the end of the fourth quarter. He finished the game with 28 points and six rebounds while going 9-of-11 from the field. But it was the freshman from Brookwood who did the damage again in a pressure situation.
Bolden, who struggled for most of the game, got 14 points in the fourth quarter. He went 7-of-8 from the free throw line and sealed the semifinals and the title game for his squad. As a result, the freshman guard was named the boys tournament MVP.
"I don’t really look at it like (I'm a freshman) out there," Bolden told the Gwinnett Daily Post. "I just see myself on the varsity like everyone else."
A player who is clutch and carries himself in such a manner is obviously someone a coach dreams about in any sport.
"(Bolden's) played well," Brookwood head coach Craig Witmer told the Gwinnett Daily Post. "He's done it for us consistently in the tournament and he's done it fairly consistently during the season. He doesn't play like a freshman."
Buford Takes Girls Bracket
The Buford Wolves are a model of excellence. They are led by a coach that preaches speed and discipline in Gene Durden and have a team stacked with talent, including freshman standout Andraya Carter, who had University of Georgia head coach Andy Landers’ attention.
The Wolves breezed through the Deep South Classic field behind Carter and senior Jocelyn Danley to win the event for the first time.
In their semifinal match-up with host Brookwood, Danley led the charge with 14 points and four rebounds. Carter added 11 points of her own and a 3-pointer that put a dagger in a late Brookwood push as the Wolves coasted to a 53-35 victory.
In the title match with Peachtree Ridge, who was represented in the boys and girls title games, Carter and Danley combined for 21 points to spark a 55-25 triumph. Buford outscored Ridge 37-11 in the second half.
"In the second we got them to play to our pace," Durden said. "And with our numbers in the second we just wore them out."
Danley was named the tournament MVP.
