Antonio Davis-coached Georgia team wins AAU crown

"I never won a championship when I was in the NBA, and I always wanted to," said the 6-foot-9 Antonio. "This is so important to me, because this helps show them what it takes to be champions. It establishes what it is to be a champion, on the court and off it."

Antonio wasn't the only one overcome by the moment. His wife, Kendra, was in tears as she gave Kaela a long embrace during the post-game celebration. But that still wasn't all. The scene when this game was done was celebratory by both sides, with Georgia pride ringing through.

Fans from the teams were seated on opposite sides of the Mayo Auditorium during the game. They had spent the last 80 minutes being boisterous and sometimes contentious. But a few minutes after its conclusion, a gentleman from the Pistons end of the gym bellowed out "Georgia!" Then folks from the Ice side quickly answered back with "basketball!" The two sides happily volleyed that back and forth for about 30 seconds -- "Georgia!,""basketball!" -- over and over.

It was the sixth time this season the teams had met, the Ice winning four of those. The contest not only matched Atlanta-based teams, but ones with distinctly similar feels. Each side had an emerging star with a big name. While Kaela Davis is the daughter of a former NBA player, the Pistons' No. 1 girl is 5-foot-11 wing Diamond DeShields. She is also the daughter of a former professional athlete, her dad former Major League baseball second baseman Delino DeShields.

It was Diamond who almost single-handedly forced this final game Friday, using her deft shooting touch and an ability to slice to the hoop to score 28 points in that morning game, 19 of them in the first half.

In the finals she and Kaela Davis had similar games, DeShields with 15 points and Davis with 10 and a pack of rebounds.

What they also shared was a similar mindset when the game was done. It centered on a respect for the opposition and a pride in Georgia basketball.

"When we play (the Pistons), we want to win, but we know those other girls and we care about them, too," Kaela said. "We know every time we play that that it's going to be a good game because they have such a strong group of girls."

DeShields, who is already being watched by such notable programs as the University of Tennessee, disclosed a similar respect.

"We want to play the best, but we know they work as had as we do and that we are both really good teams," she said.

Both really good teams with single players who are quite nicely carrying on the family name.