The NCAA tournament is only one day away. As many would say the crop of talent in Georgia is some of the best in the country and continues to prove that every year we head into March Madness. Let’s take a look at some of the former Georgia High School players who will be playing in the tourney.
Alabama State G CJ Hines- The former Archer great is having a great senior season for Alabama State. He is the leading scorer for the Hornets averaging 14.4 points per game and three rebounds. Hines improved his field goal percentage from 34% to 43.1% and his points per game average from 9.7 to 14.4 points. He is also shooting efficiently from three-point range at a 39% clip. His vast improvement in a lot of aspects of his game has been instrumental in the Hornets making the tournament for the first time since 2011. There will be a lot of pressure on Hines in the tournament, but he has already shown that he is ready to play. In Alabama State’s First Four game on Tuesday night against Saint Francis Red Flash, he finished with 10 points in the Hornets’ First Four win against St. Francis to keep the Hornets tournament hopes alive.
Florida G Will Richard- Richard is having a big impact on the Florida Gators and is a part of an immensely talented roster that has the chance to win a national championship. Richard is averaging 13.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.7 steals. The senior guard is averaging a career-high in points and steals this season for the Gators. Richard has crossed double figures in each of his last four games and has 23 outings this season where he has surpassed more than 10 points in a game. His intensity on the defensive side of the ball as one of Florida’s better defensive players also makes the team dangerous. Richard can switch out and guard multiple positions and create turnovers that lead to easy baskets. He definitely will be a player to watch in the NCAA tournament.
Texas Tech G Christian Anderson- The true freshman has been phenomenal so far in his first season of college basketball. The former Lovett star is averaging 10.8 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game. He’s gotten better as the season has gone on and has hit double-digits in six of his last seven outings tying his career-high (21 points) twice during that span. The coaching staff is trusting him more and more and he is seeing more minutes on the floor. Anderson is doing a lot of his damage from beyond the arc this season shooting the ball at a 41% clip from long range. He is a microwave scorer capable of going off on any night. His performance this season led Anderson to make the Big 12 All-Freshman team.
St. Johns G Deivon Smith- Smith has been a key piece in the resurgence of the St. Johns program under head coach Rick Pitino, who has locked down a No. 2 seed heading into the NCAA tournament. Smith is the fourth leading scorer on the team averaging 9.2 points per game. He is also averaging 4.8 rebounds and 4.0 assists. A thing to watch in the postseason is how much Smith will get to play. He’s been dealing with a nagging shoulder injury that he suffered in January that forced him to miss five games and missed some games in the Big East Tournament. The Red Storms will certainly need the former Grayson standout to make a deep run in the tourney.
Vanderbilt G Jason Edwards The former Parkview standout has made the transition from North Texas to the SEC look easy. Edwards leads the Commodores in scoring this season averaging 17 points per game as a go-to scoring option on offense. One of his best games of the season came in December against TCU when he finished with 30 points on 8-16 shooting. He was also efficient from the charity stripe making 13-14 free throws. Edwards was named third-team All-SEC after having a standout year for the Commodores in an elite conference that saw 14 teams make the NCAA tournament (an NCAA record). His scoring prowess will be something to watch in the tournament.
Here is the Full List of players playing in the tournament:
Drake Cardwell- Auburn (Evans H.S.)
Dylan Cardwell- Auburn (McEachern)
Ja’Heim Hudson- Auburn (Wheeler)
Will Richard- Florida (Woodward Academy)
PJ Carter- Memphis (Langston Hughes)
Peyton Marshall- Missouri (Kell)
Christian Anderson- Texas Tech (Lovett School)
Deivon Smith- St. John’s (Grayson)
Luke Flynn- Wofford (Marietta)
Cannon Richards- Wofford (Kell)
Anthony Arrington Jr.- Wofford (The Galloway School)
Gicarri Harris- Purdue (Grayson)
Omar Cooper- McNeese State (The Walker School)
Alyn Breed- McNeese State (McEachern)
Chase Hunter- Clemson (Westlake)
Chauncey Wiggins- Clemson (Grayson)
Dakota Leffew- Georgia (Jonesboro)
Somto Cyril- Georgia (Overtime Elite)
RJ Godfrey- Georgia (North Gwinnett)
Karris Bilal- Vanderbilt (Riverwood)
Jason Edwards- Vanderbilt (Parkview)
Devin McGlockton- Vanderbilt (South Forsyth)
Luke Champion- Arizona (Lambert)
Cameron Sheffield- Duke (Chattahoochee)
Marcus Foster- Xavier (Drew Charter)
Jordan Marshall- Alabama State (Newton)
CJ Hines- Alabama State (Archer)
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