By KEVIN ECKLEBERRY

Daily News

There are eight teams left standing in Class AA, and the Callaway Cavaliers are one of them.

Callaway (14-12), which earned its state-tournament bid by finishing third in Region 5-AA, beat Banks County 86-83 in the first round before easing past Chattooga 71-59 in round two.

The Cavaliers have reached this point because everyone who has appeared on the floor has made a contribution.

Some of those contributions are more noticeable than others, such as Demetrius Coleman scored 43 points against Banks County.

It has hardly been a one-man show, though.

Whether it’s been Antinez Blount blocking shots or pulling down rebounds, Jacob Freeman providing some key minutes off the bench, Javonta Boddie getting hot from the field at the right time, or Marvize Moss providing a spark at point guard, it has been a true team effort for the Cavaliers.

Here’s a look at some of the players, and key moments, that have helped the Cavaliers make it to the state quarterfinals for the third time in five years.

STEPPING UP: Momentum was going Chattooga’s way.

After falling behind by as many as 11 points in the first half of last week’s state-tournament game against Callaway, Chattooga rallied and took a two-point lead with less than three minutes left in the first half.

With the home crowd rocking, the Cavaliers needed someone to step up and help turn things around.

JaVontay Boddie, a talented sophomore guard, was up to the challenge.

Boddie scored nine consecutive points to give the Cavaliers a five-point lead, and they took a 32-29 lead into the halftime break.

Callaway held the lead throughout the second half on the way to the second-round win.

Boddie, who had eight points in a first-round win over Banks County, led Callaway with 23 points against Chattooga.

Boddie did a lot of his damage during that critical stretch late in the first half.

Boddie scored with 2:20 left in the half to pull the Cavaliers even, and he finished his personal 9-0 run with 30 seconds remaining to make it a 32-27 game.

One of those baskets was a 3-pointer with 55 seconds left in the half that gave the Cavaliers a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

Boddie finished with 13 points in the opening half.

“In the first half, they weren’t guarding me back door, so I just kept doing that until they stopped it,” Boddie said.

Boddie scored 10 points points in the second half to help the Cavaliers close things out.

“I told him he’s got to him some shots for us to win, and he did,” Callaway head coach Terry Hayes said of Boddie.

RISING TO THE OCCASION: Junior Antinez Blount has been a key contributor in both of Callaway’s state-tournament wins.

The 6-foot-3 Blount had 18 points and played a stellar all-around game in the opening round against Banks County.

Blount came up big once again in the Chattooga game.

Blount was held scoreless in the first half, but he scored eight points in the second half as Callaway pulled away.

In addition to the points he scored, Blount was arguably the most active player on the court, whether he was grabbing rebounds, blocking shots, or playing lock-down defense.

“He boxed out. He rebounded,” Hayes said. “He played tonight.”

THE FINISHER: Callaway was in control, leading by eight points midway through the fourth quarter against Chattooga.

While Callaway may have had a fairly comfortable lead, the game was a long way from over against a Chattooga team that can score points in bunches.

Fortunately for the Cavaliers, they had Demetrius Coleman on their side.

Coleman was coming off a remarkable performance in the first round of the playoffs against Banks County when he scored 43 points.

Coleman was having another nice outing against Chattooga, although at the halfway point of the fourth quarter he’d only scored one point in the second half.

That was about to change.

Coleman hit three 3-pointers within about a two-minute span to help the Cavaliers put the game on ice.

With 4:05 to play, Coleman knocked down the first of those 3-pointers to give the Cavaliers a 59-48 lead.

Less than a minute later, Coleman connected again from long distance, and Callaway led 64-50 with 2:38 remaining.

When Coleman made the last of his late barrage of 3-pointers with 1:07 to play, the Cavaliers led 70-52, and it was time to celebrate.

Coleman finished with 20 points, and he made five 3-pointers.