Granger dominates title game
The promise that Jordon Granger made to McCluer North High School head coach Randy Reed before the District Tournament was fulfilled on Saturday night.
Granger, a 6-foot-8 Auburn signee, promised he would lead his Stars team to a district and state championship. Saturday night, the Stars beat Nixa High School 69-60 in the Missouri Class 5 state championship to complete the mission. It was the school's second straight state title.
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"It feels that I was a man of my word. Things have to get done and I'm a man of my word," Granger told AuburnSports.com. "To get two state championships back-to-back is a great feeling, there aren't too many words to explain it. It was a great win."
In the semifinals against Lee's Summitt West, Granger was held in check scoring only 11 points. Granger would not be as quiet in the final game of his career.
Granger dominated the game scoring 26 points (19 in the first half, 9-for-11), and grabbed 16 rebounds (10 in the first half) in the championship win. McCluer North finished with a 28-1 record and the No. 1-ranking in STLhighschoolsports.com large school rankings.
Prior to the season, McCluer North was unranked in the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association preseason poll. Granger and his teammates took it personal.
In Granger's two biggest games, the district championship and the state championship, he averaged 25.5 points, 13.5 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks.
"I felt like being a senior, it's your last chance to do anything important and I wanted my legacy to be known. I felt un-guardable. I felt like I had the hustle in me," said Granger. "Everything was falling, hook shots, jump shots, everything was going our way."
Nixa, who finished 30-2, had won 30 straight games before the state final loss to McCluer North.
Granger finished the season averaging close to 16 points, 8 rebounds, and three blocks per game. Granger will now take a couple of weeks off before getting back to work preparing to report to Auburn in June.
"I'm looking forward to it, War Damn Eagle!" Granger said.
One day prior to Granger winning a state title, fellow Auburn signees Shaquille Johnson and Jordan Price played for state titles in Georgia. Johnson led his Milton High School squad to a state title in Class AAAAA, while Price and Southwest Dekalb High School fell in the Class AAAA state finals.