We Speak High School Basketball
Twice Beaten on Championship Wednesday, Holy Innocents’ Comes Back Loaded
One school. One day in Macon. Two state finals — and two trophies carried out by somebody else. No program in Georgia carries more unfinished business into this season than Holy Innocents’.
Last March, the Bears’ boys (26-4), the defending Private champions, lost the Private final 53-50 to Darlington. Belmont signee Devin Hutcherson led them with 13 points and 10 rebounds. The same day, the HIES girls (24-7) lost the girls Private final 46-42 to Hebron Christian — a rematch of the 2025 final HIES had won. Three starters fouled out, including Loriel Murray and Makayla Weaver, before freshman Parker Smith scored 8 points in a personal 6-0 run that cut it to 43-42 with 2:53 left. Aaniyah Branch grabbed 16 rebounds with 8 blocks.
Here’s the twist: almost all of them are back. The girls open as the preseason No. 2 team in the Private division, with 6-3 junior Loriel Murray and freshman guard Kimora Wynn as Preseason First Team All-State picks, 6-5 Aaniyah Branch a Third Team pick, and the Weaver sisters — senior Makayla and junior Makenzie — plus sophomore Parker Smith all returning. On the boys’ side, freshman guard Deuce Grayson is a Preseason Second Team pick in the Private division.
Twice beaten on championship Wednesday. Loaded for the rematch.
We Speak High School Basketball
Remember These Names: E’zariyah Clark and Amira White Headline Florida’s 2030 Class in Tampa
They haven’t played a minute of high school basketball yet. In Tampa, people are already learning their names.
E’zariyah Clark arrives at Tampa Bay Tech as a 5-11 forward and combo guard in the class of 2030, playing club ball for HER Elite. Prep Girls Hoops’ evaluation reads like a varsity scouting report: a midrange game, range out to the deep ball, and rim protection built on length and timing — a freshman who “should be a key contributor for TBT alongside a talented group of guards.”
Across town, Amira White gives Plant a 6-0 power forward from the same 2030 class, playing for MBJ Elite. Prep Girls Hoops calls her “a major addition for Plant as the program looks to reestablish itself among the top teams in Tampa and across the state,” pointing to a back-to-the-basket game with an outside shot to match.
Florida’s 2030 class, as Prep Girls Hoops frames it, is a group whose size and length make them names to watch from day one. Two of the biggest are starting their careers in Tampa gyms this winter. Remember where you heard them first.
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