By allowing ads to appear on this site, you support the local businesses who, in turn, support great journalism.
Heartbreak has to wait
Rebels to face Langston Hughes in first round of state tourney
Jake Darling
Rebels coach Jake Darling shouts instructions to his team Thursday night in Statesboro. - photo by Mark Lastinger/staff

By Donald Heath

Special for the Effingham Herald


STATESBORO — Disappointment will have to be put on hold, or better yet, erased from the memories of the Effingham County boys.

The Rebels (18-8) begin their journey into the Class AAAAAA state tournament Wednesday at home against Langston Hughes with new hopes and dreams.

“Everybody wanted a region championship, but I guess it wasn’t in the cards,” ECHS coach Jake Darling said. “Luckily, we have another game. It’s a chance to redeem ourselves and a chance to make a run in the state playoffs.”

It’s the first state tournament game at home for the Rebels since beating Tucker 64-55 in the first round in 2017 – ECHS’ last state tournament win.

That year, the Rebels lost a heartbreaker to Brunswick in the region tournament final. If it’s possible, this year’s 54-52 loss to Statesboro at the buzzer in the 2-AAAAAA final stung more.

“We all felt the same pain,” Darling said. “It’s tough to lose on a last-second shot, but it shows every possession counts in a game like this (against Statesboro). We made a couple of mistakes and they came back to bite us at the end.”

The last two weeks have been a continuous rollercoaster ride for ECHS, which has played two overtime games and two two-point decisions in its last five games.

In just the fourth quarter of the region tournament semifinals against Bradwell Institute on Feb. 15, the Rebels blew an eight-point lead, then overcame an eight-point deficit to survive a third straight overtime game with the Tigers.

ECHS had an eight-point lead in the fourth quarter against Statesboro in a quest for its first region title since 2013 — JaKeenan Gant’s junior year — but just one field goal in the final 4:27 stalled the opportunity.

Kam Mikell’s follow-up layup as the buzzer sounded began a wild Statesboro celebration.

“There’s been a lot of close games, but we’ve been playing a lot of good teams and that’s not going to change,” Darling said. “(Langston Hughes’ Region 4) is a tough region to come out of so we’ll have our hands full.”

The third-seeded Panthers from Fairburn (about 20 miles south of Atlanta) won Class AAAAAA state championships in 2017 and 2018.

Hughes is 16-12 this season, but have eight losses by five points or less. Five of the Panthers’ defeats were in region play to Westlake (ranked No. 2 in Class AAAAAA before region tournament play by Score Atlanta) and Tucker (ranked No. 7).

Hughes has balanced scoring, led by 6-foot-7, 225-pound junior forward Jelani Thurman (9.3 ppg., 8.7 rpg.), who already has football offers from Florida State, Georgia Tech, Kentucky and Indiana, according to Internet site 24-7 Sports.