The Baldwin Braves were able to play their specific brand of basketball to earn the team’s second consecutive Region 3-4A championship Friday night. They defeated the Burke County Bears 47-40 and will enter the GHSA state playoffs as a No. 1 seed. 

MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. — In front of a rambunctious home crowd, the Baldwin Braves took down the Burke County Bears to win their second consecutive Region 3-4A title. 

“Two region championships in three years is unbelievable,” Braves head coach Buck Harris said. “These kids did it all. They worked their tails off from the fall until now, and we’re not done.”

In the first quarter, Donte Justice, who was honored before the game with a game ball for achieving the 1,000-point milestone for his career as a Brave, opened the scoring for Baldwin with a 3-point basket. But Burke County’s quick offensive attack overwhelmed the Braves early, and they used an early 10-3 run to jump out to a 13-9 lead at the end of the quarter. 

“I think [the slow start] could have been a little jitters,” said Harris. “We just needed to get going and get the adrenaline flowing. We just needed to make a bucket and get settled in defensively, and then we were able to do some stuff.”

In the second quarter, the defensive intensity picked up for the Braves, as they employed some full-court pressure to force some turnovers to jump-start the offense. At the half, the Braves cut Burke County’s lead to 23-22. 

After the halftime break, Baldwin found its stride offensively, and following back-to-back 3-pointers from Donte Justice and Rodney Walker, the Braves took a 10-point lead. 

“We just started defending and rebounding, and we wanted to attack the basket,” said Harris of his team’s third quarter rally that gave them the lead. “Defensively I’ve been telling these guys all year if we defend we’re going to be able to win a lot of games.”

Defensively, Baldwin also switched gears at the start of the second half, as they shifted away from their full-court pressure and opted to play 2-3 zone late in the game.

“I had an epiphany yesterday, and I said can they make enough 3s to beat us,” said Harris. “And I said if we rebound out of the zone and do what we need to do we’ll be fine.”

In the second half, Baldwin got a boost on the defensive end from junior forward Aaron Kelsey, who came off the bench and snatched several key rebounds down the stretch. 

“Aaron Kelsey and I had some words yesterday, and he was a little mad because he didn’t play,” said Harris. “But I told him you’ve got to trust the process, and he was the player of the game tonight. He took some charges and gave us some toughness on the inside.”

As the fourth quarter began, Baldwin held a commanding 38-27 lead, but Burke County had one final run left, and cut the Braves lead to 42-40 with 1:13 left to play in the game. 

However, Baldwin kept its composure, closing the game on a 5-0 run to push the final score to 47-40. 

Senior guard Rodney Walker played a big role for the Braves down the stretch, as he scored seven of his game-high 19 points in the fourth quarter. Walker was also a big factor for Baldwin on the glass, as he grabbed several rebounds on both ends to help seal the game for Baldwin. 

“Rodney Walker has been huge for us all year,” said Harris of the senior guard. “This isn’t the first game he’s done that. He rebounds like a madman, and he can score for us. He just does all the little stuff for us. He’s a winner.”

After taking the region title for the second straight season, the Braves will enter the state playoffs as a No. 1 seed. After Friday night’s win, Harris’ message to his team was simple. 

“Enjoy this win, but we’re not done,” Harris said. “We’ve got to take it one game at a time in state, and playing at home with the home court advantage with the student section and fans here was unbelievable.”

The Braves will be back in action Saturday at home in the first round of the state playoffs against No. 4 seed Druid Hills out of Region 4. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.