The GHSA  is packing up and moving the Boys and Girls state basketball championships from the Macon Coliseum and Centreplex  to the campuses of the University of Georgia  and to Georgia Tech.  In 2017 sixteen state champions will be crowned in eight classifications.  Four games will be played each day Wednesday through Saturday with the first two days games  played at the University of Georgia’s Stegeman Coliseum and the Friday and Saturday games being help at Georgia Tech’s  McCamish Pavilion. The University of Georgia has never been a site for a GHSA championship game and Georgia Tech’s “Thrillerdome”  was last utilized in 2003.

Some coaches love the move.

“This is great news.  I was fortunate enough to play at Georgia Tech in 2003 before they remodeled it. It was a great experience for the players who deserve to play at the nicest venues because they do all the hard work. Who wouldn’t want to play in a Division 1 facility in front of a huge crowd,” says coach Dan Maehlman who led Jonesboro to state titles in 2014 and 2015.

“This is a good decision. We have played at Georgia Tech in the past and the girls loved it.  It helps get them prepared for college and it will be a much better experience for both the players and coaches,” says McEachern coach Phyllis Arthur who has led her team to GHSA state championships in 2012-2014-1015 and 2016.

Coach George Washington from 2016 state 6A  runner-up Pebblebrook High School  agrees, “We are excited, very excited.  For us to get the opportunity to play on those courts with those atmospheres is awesome. A lot of high school players will never get to compete in college so for them to play on a college court in the state championships will be a great experience.”

Dr. Aaron Geter who has led Wilkinson County to seven state titles will miss the tradition of playing in Macon.  “ A generation of kids dreamed of playing for the state title at the Centreplex.  There is a great legacy of high school tradition and history there. But if the decision has been made, the players and coaches will adjust.”

Jamond Sims who led Morgan County to state titles in 2014 and 2016 sums it up this way.

“There are two schools of thought.  I hate  to lose the tradition and heritage of trying to ‘make it to Macon’ for the state finals. But on the other hand there is now a changing of the guard that will focus on improvements and making better opportunities for the players, coaches, and fans by playing at Georgia and Georgia Tech.”

The first boy’s state champion was Lanier High School back in 1922.  The first girl’s titles were won in 1945 by Hartwell High School and Damascus High School.   The Centreplex was opened in 1968 and was the home to the GHSA  A, AA, and AAA  Championships from 1968 on.   The higher classifications  also have played in Macon in recent years.

Both the Stegeman Coliseum and the McCamish Pavilion have undergone recent overhauls.  The “Steg” underwent a 13 million dollar expansion and renovation in 2009-10, while the “Thrillerdome” at Georgia Tech underwent a 45 million dollar face lift in 2010.   Both will be ready to rock and roll for next year’s GHSA Boys and Girls State Championships.