6 Columbus area high school basketball teams reach a Final Four, two wins from state title
Six high school basketball teams in the Columbus area have reached the Final Four of their state tournaments in Georgia and Alabama.
Here’s a roundup of those teams, how they got there and their schedule for the state semifinals and potential championship games:
Carver boys
In the 16-team Georgia High School Association Class AA boys basketball state playoffs, Carver beat archrival Spencer 73-45 Wednesday night in the quarterfinals.
This game between two Columbus teams was expected to have such an intense crowd, the Muscogee County School District announced in a news release about six hours before the game that “enhanced safety measures” were being implemented “by increasing the number of officers on-site” and “all school-aged children” had to be “accompanied by a parent or guardian to enter the game.”
Carver will play Butler in a semifinal at 3 p.m. Feb. 28 at Georgia Southwestern University.
This is Carver’s second straight year reaching the semifinals. The Tigers lost 66-32 to Sandy Creek in the GHSA Class AAA Final Four last season.
The Tigers (27-2) went undefeated this season in the region (14-0). They are on a 19-game winning streak. Their last loss was Dec. 30, when New Manchester edged them 77-76. Their average game score this season is 83-43.
And their previous playoff games this year also have been romps: 71-33 over Rutland and 75-54 over Burke County.
Carver has won two state championships in the program’s history (1971 and 2019).
Hardaway girls
In the 16-team GHSA Class AA girls basketball state playoffs, the Hardaway Hawks also have reached the semifinals at Georgia Southwestern University. They will play Josey at 5 p.m. Feb. 28.
The winner will travel to the Macon Centreplex to play in the championship game, March 6 at 1 p.m., against the winner of the semifinal between Murray County and Morgan County.
Hardaway (24-6) has blown out its opponents in the first three rounds of this year’s state playoffs: 76-22 over Jackson, then 81-22 over Franklin County and, in the quarterfinals, 76-27 over Columbia.
The Hawks, who were undefeated (14-0) in the region, are on a 14-game winning streak. They haven’t lost since Hoover nipped them 60-57 Jan. 18. Their average score in 30 games this season is 67-36.
This is the third straight year Hardaway has reached the semifinals. The Hawks lost 47-39 to Baldwin in last season’s GHSA Class AAAA title game. Now, they again seek the program’s first state championship.
GPB will broadcast all GHSA basketball state championship games March 5-8 on GPB-TV and will livestream them on GPB.org/Sports, the GPB Sports App and their social media platforms.
St. Anne-Pacelli boys and girls
In the Georgia Independent Athletic Association Class AAAA basketball playoffs, the St. Anne-Pacelli Vikings boys and girls teams are going for their second straight state championships after neither program had won such a title in the school’s 66-year history.
Both are in the semifinals of their 12-team brackets. They were scheduled to play Feb. 27 at Columbus State University. The girls were set to face Stratford at 3 p.m., and the boys meet Tattnall Square at 7:30 p.m.
The St. Anne-Pacelli boys are undefeated (26-0). Their average game score is 67-46. After a bye in the first round of the state playoffs, they beat Tallulah Falls 80-56 in the quarterfinals.
Cristo Rey plays Athens Christian in the other semifinal. The championship game will be a t8 p.m. March 1 at CSU.
The St. Anne-Pacelli girls (20-4) went undefeated in their region (8-0). Their average game score is 56-34. They are on a six-game winning streak. Their last loss was Feb. 1, 69-56 to Midtown. After a bye in the first round of the state playoffs, they beat Tattnall Square 57-25.
Athens Christian plays George Walton in the other semifinal. The championship game will be 6:20 p.m. March 1 at CSU.
Central-Phenix City boys and girls
In the Alabama High School Athletic Association Class 7A basketball playoffs, the Central-Phenix City Red Devils boys and girls teams are in the semifinals of their 16-team brackets. Both were set to play Feb. 27 at Legacy Arena in Birmingham.
And both Central teams play Hoover: the girls at 1 p.m. CST, then the boys at 2:30 p.m. CST. The other boys semifinal is Florence against Fairhope, and the other girls semifinal is Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa against Daphne.
The championship games will be March 1 at Legacy Arena: 5 p.m. CST for the girls, then 6:45 p.m. CST for the boys.
All games at the AHSAA state basketball Final Four will be broadcast live. Semifinal games will be broadcast on WOTM-TV (AHSAA TV Network). The championship games and 7A semifinals will be on Alabama Public Television.
In the first round of the state playoffs, the Central boys beat Dothan 68-61, then Auburn 59-42 in the quarterfinals. The Central girls beat Enterprise 64-54 in the first round, then Auburn 63-53 in the quarterfinals.
The Central boys (29-4) went undefeated in their area (7-0). Their average game score is 75-57. They are on a 13-game winning streak. Their last loss was Dec. 31, 72-60 to Calvary Christian Academy of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
The Central girls (22-6) lost both of their area games to Auburn but flipped the result in that first-round state playoff victory. Their average game score is 57-42.
Both basketball programs at Central are seeking their first state championship.
This is the third straight year and 11th overall that the Central boys have reached the semifinals, Central historian Mark Clark told the Ledger-Enquirer. They advanced to the state title game three times but lost them all: in 1999 to Grissom-Huntsville 44-38), in 2016 to McGill-Toole 79-75 and in 2023 to Hoover 84-66.
The Central girls have played in five state semifinals. The last time was in 2020. They never have reached the championship game.
Hoover has beaten the Central girls in their past three state tournaments and the Central boys in their past two. Now, the Red Devils have two more chances to persevere over their nemesis.
This story was originally published February 27, 2025 at 9:42 AM.
