The 7th year anniversary of the Holiday Hoopsgiving High School tournament stopped by the city to provide the gift of high-quality basketball. The festivities tipped off on Friday and Saturday at Shiloh High School in Snellville, Georgia and showcased some of the top-rated high school ballers in the country. Saturday night concluded the tournament with a highly anticipated showdown between ESPN class of 2022 top nationally-ranked guards of Mikey Williams and Scoota Henderson. Henderson, a native of Marietta, led the home team Kell High School as Williams carried Lake Norman High School out of North Carolina.
Mikey Williams and the Lake Norman Christian Storm came out strong in the first half, leading the Kell Longhorns 53-38. The Longhorns struggles defensively and could not find an answer for the visiting storm, allowing them to drop 28 points in the first quarter alone. Williams and company outsized the local Longhorns on the court, however, the crowd energy was largely in favor for the home team. The stands, populated by several local celebrities including Quavo, Jacquees, and Anthony Edwards, rumbled with enough energy to keep the Longhorns motivated coming into the second half.
Scoota Henderson ended up leading the night with 36 points, seven assists, and two steals. The young guard was flashy with his high flying dunks, yet still efficient on the floor as he shot 60% from the field. Kell was able to rally past the Storm after a late surge by the Longhorns led to 28 points in the fourth quarter alone. Although the offense was full of entertainment, the Longhorns became relentless in the fourth quarter and only allowed 11 points from its opponent. This was a huge turnaround from the opening quarter where they gave up 28 points. Kell’s aggressiveness on the defensive end led to 25 fast break points that typically would end in an alley-oop and loving praise from the stands.
Kell ended the night successful over Lake Norman with a final score of 88-77. Mikey Williams finished the game with 28 points and three assists but it was his five turnovers that hindered the visiting star.
“I felt like we came out flat and so I challenged them in the second half to play our style of ball and come out with more intensity. They overcame the 15 point [deficit] to win by 11. You can’t beat that.” Kell High School Head Basketball Coach Jermaine Sellers stated.
The Holiday Hoopsgiving Tournament will continue on Dec 6th with a collegiate showcase as Georgia Tech will face nationally-ranked Kentucky at State Farm Arena.
