ATLANTA, Ga. — Buford’s bid for their first state title game since 2020 came to a frustrating end on Saturday at the hands of defending Class 7A state champion Norcross.
The Lady Wolves could not hold onto a second half lead as the Lady Blue Devils rallied for a 58-46 win in the Class 7A semifinals at Georgia State Arena.
Buford took a 29-26 lead into halftime but Norcross stormed out with an 11-2 run to start the third quarter and the Lady Wolves never recovered.
Buford coach Gene Durden said missed chances in the first half came back to haunt them. The second half was about not converting on the offensive end once the Lady Blue Devils got the lead.
“We had so many opportunities in the first half to give us a little bit of cushion, and we didn't take advantage of it,” Durden said. “We knew it was going to be a war with them. They were going to fight back and we just didn't answer.
“We got some really good open looks (in the second half) but unfortunately we couldn't get them to fall. Then, after we got behind, we started forcing some shots a little bit more and their pressure got to us.”
The Lady Wolves had Ava Grace Watson, who poured in a game-high 25 points. But Norcross had the balance as no other player for Buford had more than 7 (Betty Nguyen).
Veronaye Charlton paced Norcross with 19 points. Janice Akins had 11, and Murkeisa Lancaster 10 for the Lady Blue Devils.
But Durden, whose group had not been to the Final 4 since the last of four straight state titles from 2017-20, said it was also about understanding the moment. And building for the future.
“This group was learning,” he said. “This was the first time we've been back to a Final 4 in 3 years, so it's kind of an eye-opening experience for some of our kids, so hopefully, we'll take the experience and build on it for next year.
“Last year there was a lot of transition and everything else but this crew just really pulled it together and went back to believing in our program, went back to believing it in what we do.”
