Local basketball coaches like new locations for GHSA state finals

The Macon Coliseum had a long history of hosting the Georgia High School Association’s state basketball championships. But after a controversy erupted last winter with the misplacement of the goals during the 2016 championships, the GHSA decided last month to move them out of Macon.

Next year, the games will be split between the University of Georgia and Georgia Tech. The decision was the result of adding two more championship games and feeling like one location was no longer enough to handle such a marathon.

The general feeling from local coaches is that it is a positive move. Columbus girls basketball coach Joe Cherrone, who coached his 2014 team in a state title game at Macon Coliseum, said he thought the Macon facilities just weren’t up to the standard that was needed for so many games.

“I think it’s an excellent choice (to move to Georgia and Georgia Tech) because the facilities themselves were not suitable to have all those championships in that number of days,” he said. “When we went in 2014, the building was just a lot older and wasn’t what you expect playing in a state championship.”

He added that he thought it would be good for players to have a chance to see the facilities at the major universities.

“You can see what those universities are like, and there will be a lot more excitement from both the girls and the boys,” he said.

Kendrick’s Sterling Hicks said that he isn’t so much worried about where the games are played, just as long as his team gets there. He did say that playing in Macon was special, but that the circumstances, and not the location, are what make it so.

“I’m good either way,” he said. “I do think it is good to be at Georgia and Georgia Tech.”

Title games will be played at Georgia on Wednesday and Thursday, March 8 and 9, and at Georgia Tech on Friday and Saturday, March 10 and 11.

Phillips would not commit to the desire to keep the title games at those locations in the long term because there could be potential scheduling conflicts down the road, adding that the dates just worked out well this year.

“We just have too many games now that we couldn’t go in and play them all in one place,” GHSA executive director Gary Phillips said. “Even in Macon, we have to play four days or add another site. You talk about 16 championships, that’s just a marathon.”

So, after coming to a decision to split into two locations, Georgia’s Stegeman Coliseum and Georgia Tech’s McCamish Pavilion were immediately considered.

“We have used Georgia Tech’s facilities in the past, and that was before it was renovated,” Phillips said. “There has always been interest from this office in returning there or playing at UGA. If you have two large universities in the state, it’s common for those championships to be staged in those locations.”

This story was originally published June 8, 2016 at 5:31 PM with the headline "Local basketball coaches like new locations for GHSA state finals."