ARBY'S CLASSIC: Melrose holds off rally, grabs tourney title

BRISTOL, Tenn. – Melrose coach Jermaine Johnson believes in the characteristics and features which surround a grueling 10-round fight. In fact, it’s Melrose’s team statement.
After Thursday, the Golden Wildcats sported those bumps and bruises which surround one of those encounters. They also had a large trophy at the end as well.

Melrose captured the 27th-annual Arby’s Classic after a successful four-win stretch filled with the best efforts from just about all of the tournament’s upper-echelon squads. But it was perhaps the 55-51 victory earned against worthy opponent Greater Atlanta Christian School that spoke the biggest volumes for a Melrose team that left the tourney still unscathed.

But also, it was a Melrose team that had greatly matured.

“It starts with discipline, and at the end, it talks about leaving a legacy,” said Johnson, referring to his 10-round fight that fits right alongside a successful rite of passage. “I told the kids that this [tourney] has been here 27 years. If they wanted to be a special group and have their name etched in the media guide every year, they had to go out and go up those steps.”

Nearly at the top of the tourney staircase with 6:55 remaining, the Golden Wildcats – who were ahead 49-34 behind Telvin Wilkerson’s jumper – appeared ready for the coronation walk.

Someone, however, forgot to tell that to GACS.

The Spartans, unbeaten in their own right until Thursday, nearly pulled off their second consecutive – and highly improbable – rally in as many nights behind the play of their sneaky fast pressure. As Melrose (16-0) continued to sputter offensively with shot selection and impatience, GACS (10-1) calmly continued knocking down long-range – but open – jumpers.

The building result was a 17-3 surge, capped by a steal and layup from Paul Dawson – even after two previous Golden Wildcat timeouts – to draw the Spartans within 52-51 with 54.4 seconds remaining.

“That’s one of the things we’ve found out about our team,” praised GACS coach Eddie Martin. “We haven’t been pushed real hard until we got here. That’s something right there that you can’t practice or talk about. I think it shows a lot of character.”

Bobby Parks then drained two free throws on the other end to give Melrose a three-point cushion with 47.9 seconds left. On its subsequent possession, GACS elected to hold the ball out on the perimeter for about 20 seconds before Martin called for a timeout.

During the stoppage, Martin drew up a double-screen at the foul line to free up Malcolm Brogdon for a potential game-tying trey. And as the ball was inbounded by the Spartans, Brogdon sprung free for a great look at the top of the key.

“The thing that I liked about it was that we executed it very well and got the shot,” added Martin. “All you can hope for there is that he knocks it down.”

Unfortunately for GACS, Brogdon’s toss hit the back of the unforgiving rim, falling down to tourney MVP Chris Jones.

“It’s still a great shot, and you’re not going to fault a kid for missing a shot like that,” Martin continued. “I was just very pleased with our kids, especially when we were down, for not quitting. But that team is loaded.”

Jones, who had a team-high 12 points, hit one of two free throws to claim victory.

“They’re a tough team,” noted Jones. “We needed this to keep our heads straight though so that we could win this game. We just had to believe in our system – and we came out with a victory.”

Dawson paced all scorers with 16 points for the Spartans, while Brogdon and Trent Wiedeman each had 12 points.

Adonis Thomas added 11 points for Melrose, which had to overcome a 15-5 GACS start and just a 9-for-30 first-half shooting performance.

After the trophy and medal presentations, Johnson was alone in the post-game media room – recalling a memorable day which saw him meet with mentor and coach George

Pitts before perhaps one of the best finishes to the Arby’s Classic in quite some time.

He smiled.

“They climbed tonight,” remarked Johnson. “This is a validation. We’re now up there with the great ones that won this great tournament.”