2016-17 GISA Class AA Boys State Championship Game

Analysis: Windsor Academy vs. Furtah Prep

1st Quarter

From the outset of the game it was clear that Windsor Academy wanted to make it a fast pace game. For the entire first quarter, Furtah Prep took its chances playing at a helter skelter pace with the Knights, which played into Windsor’s favor. Utilizing their quickness and athleticism, Jai’Kez Mann and Marquise Jackson got into their comfort zones out in transition and put Windsor up 13-8 at the end of a back and forth first quarter.

2nd Quarter

Windsor stretched the lead to 16-8 after scoring three quick points to begin the quarter, which forced Furtah Prep to call a timeout. Coming out of the timeout (6:38), Furtah adjusted its gameplan and decided to slow the game down by stalling the ball as Windsor sat back in a 2-3 zone defense. The Knights were content in letting the clock tick as the Fighting Falcons stood at half court. At about the 1:00 minute mark, Windsor forced Furtah to run some action on offense by switching to a man to man defense. Both teams went on to scored a bucket apiece and went into the half with a score of 18-10.

3rd Quarter

In the third quarter, the game had settled down into a relatively close slow paced contest. 6-foot-7 Luka Jaksic scored nine of Furtah’s thirteen points in the period. Windsor’s Jai’Kez Mann continued his hot shooting to keep the Knights ahead as they traded baskets with the Fighting Falcons. At the end of the quarter, the Knights led 27-23 and all of a Furtah’s idea of ball stalling looked to be a great strategy.

4th Quarter

Entering the final period of play, Furtah had Windsor exactly where they wanted them, in a tight slow paced ball game. However, the Knights picked up their defensive intensity and sped the game up. Windsor scored five unanswered to start the quarter to push the lead to 32-23 with 6:51 left in the game. At this point, the Fighting Falcons were forced to play uptempo, which eventually doomed them. Over the next three minutes, Marquise Jackson capitalized by getting long outlet passes in transition after Furtah missed jumpshot after jumpshot. By the 2:47 mark Windsor had blew the game open and were up comfortably going down the stretch. With :50 seconds remaining, 5-foot-10 Jackson threw down a thunderous one hand dunk to put an exclamation point on Windsor’s 52-31 state championship victory over Furtah Prep.

What We Learned

In spite of being in a league (GISA) that doesn’t get very much respect around the state of Georgia, Windsor deserves a lot of credit and respect. They are well coached and have some players that are capable of competing at high levels. In fact, the Knights have two or three low major prospects on their roster. 5-foot-10 point guard, Marquise Jackson stands out the most. He will be a steal for whoever decides to give him an opportunity to play at the next level. The crafty senior guard is as tough as nails and will bring a high motor and great athleticism with him. Remember the name, Marquise Jackson!

Furtah is a solid program that is fundamentally sound. The Fighting Falcons put together a great gameplan, but in the end it was just too much Marquise Jackson (23pts) and Jai’Kez Mann (22pts). The dynamic duo combined for 45 of Windsor’s 51 points.