Class AA
Region 1
Team Overall Region
No. 1 Thomasville 18-1 6-1
No. 2 Seminole County 13-4 5-1
Early County 14-4 4-2
Brooks County 8-10 3-4
Fitzgerald 8-6 3-4
Pelham 6-7 2-4
Berrien 7-11 0-7
It might be a safe bet that the eventual state champion will come from Region 1 or will at least have to go through a few Region 1 teams to hoist the trophy. Last year it was No. 2 Seminole County winning the state title behind UGA signee Jordan Harris and Anfernee King. A true Batman and Robin duo, the two are the blood that courses through the Indians’ veins. Harris averages 31 points, 11.1 rebounds, 6 assists, 3.6 steals and 2.2 blocks while King posts 17.4 points, 6 rebounds, 7.3 assists and 5.1 steals. The dynamic duo combined for 49 points to take down No. 1 Thomasville on Jan. 9, 71-65. The Bulldogs might be the deepest and biggest team in the state. Brothers Alex and Reggie Perry transferred from Maclay High School in Tallahassee. Alex is a 6-foot-6 senior forward while Reggie stands 6-foot-8 as a sophomore and holds interest from Florida, Florida State, Oklahoma and Arkansas to name a few. They pair up with Jordan Willis, Thomasville’s leader at point guard and Shedric Cooper, a danger from deep. And don’t forget about massive freshman, Titus Wright, a 6-foot-8, 230-pound monster inside. Early County was also in the race for first-place and in the top ten, but a 68-67 upset loss at Brooks County last Saturday hurts their chances. The Bobcats play at Thomasville on Jan. 29 and host Seminole County on Feb. 5. The Indians and Bulldogs play at Thomasville on Feb. 2 in a showdown that will likely determine the region regular season champion.
Region 2
Team Overall Region
No. 3 Vidalia 17-2 10-0
Long County 15-5 8-2
Benedictine 10-7 5-4
Bryan County 9-8 5-5
Jeff Davis 9-10 4-5
Bacon County 7-11 4-6
Groves 2-15 2-8
McIntosh County 2-16 1-9
No. 3 Vidalia continues to win and is one of Southeast Georgia’s most consistent programs. Upstart Long County had a chance to dethrone them on Jan. 12, but the Indians went on the road and picked up a 76-65 victory. On Dec. 8, Vidalia took care of the Blue Tide 96-77 and will now cruise to another regular season region title. Long County has come out of nowhere to push Vidalia this year after the Tide finished 6-22 in 2014-15. Sophomores Henry Blair (12.3 ppg), Christian Bass (9.9 ppg, 7.4 rpg) and Ryhiem Izzard (8.3 ppg) have blossomed into important pieces for Coach Deshon Brock. Junior Perrell Brisbane averages 11.7 points and 7.4 rebounds.
Region 3
Team Overall Region
No. 9 Dublin 15-3 6-0
Swainsboro 10-6 6-1
Screven County 7-6 4-2
East Laurens 6-8 3-3
Jefferson County 4-11 3-5
Metter 3-14 1-5
Harlem 2-17 0-7
Following a 12-17 season, No. 9 Dublin is back in the driver’s seat in Region 3. The Fighting Irish scrapped out a 65-56 win at home vs. Swainsboro last Friday, but still have to escape the Tigers at home Jan. 30, no easy task especially after Swainsboro won a controversial second round playoff game vs. Holy Innocents’ last year in overtime, 57-52. The clock operator awarded the Tigers a crucial point after Swainsboro had missed a free throw with three minutes to play in the fourth. Swainsboro might only be 10-6, but they are battle tested after scheduling 5A’s Statesboro and No. 10 Effingham County 2x, 1A-Public’s No. 3 Wilkinson County 2x and No. 1 Treutlen, and 1A-Private’s Tattnall Square Academy, who just fell out of the top ten this past week. The Tigers also battled with No. 3 Vidalia, losing 59-58.
Region 4
Team Overall Region
No. 4 Crawford County 15-2 7-0
Monticello 12-7 5-2
Macon County 12-5 4-3
Lamar County 8-9 3-3
Bleckley County 6-9 3-4
Putnam County 2-18 2-5
Northeast-Macon 2-17 0-7
Last season’s state-runner up No. 4 Crawford County should cruise to its second straight undefeated region schedule behind William Jarrell and Marcal Knolton. Jarrell averages close to a triple-double going over 26 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists a night while collecting around 5 steals and 4 blocks. Knolton, a junior, is putting up monster number as well, averaging over 19 points, 12 rebounds and six blocks. Everyone returns from last year’s team that came up just short. The Eagles are one of the state’s highest scoring offenses pouring in 81.7 points a night. Monticello lost 73-55 at home to Crawford County but has one more shot next Tuesday. The Hurricanes use a balanced attack led by De’Miria Glover while Macon County leans on 6-foot-5 forward Marquell Wiggins, who just committed to play at Georgia College.
Region 5
Team Overall Region
Manchester 13-5 5-0
Temple 14-3 4-1
Heard County 10-9 3-2
Bowdon 10-9 1-3
Bremen 3-14 1-4
Chattahoochee County 3-12 0-4
The Region 5 race will come down to Manchester and Temple with Heard County hoping for both teams to falter. The Blue Devils held off Temple 65-62 this Tuesday to gain a game on the Tigers. The final game of the season pits the two against each other at Manchester on Feb. 5. If Temple wants to steal a win, Peyton Applewhite will need a big game. The 6-foot-7, 245-pound center can hit the three ball and also bang inside with his back to the basket. Demarcus Addie, Jah’nile Hill and Jerquavion Mahone will be three go-to guys for Coach Curtis Noble’s Blue Devils.
Region 6
Team Overall Region
No. 5 Pace Academy 9-8 7-1
No. 6 Lovett 13-4 7-1
No. 8 GAC 12-8 7-2
No. 10 Holy Innocents’ 14-5 5-4
Wesleyan 11-8 5-4
Hapeville Charter 7-11 2-7
KIPP Atlanta 6-7 1-7
BEST Academy 1-9 0-8
Four teams fill up the top ten from Region 6, but it hasn’t been a smooth road. No. 5 Pace Academy is finally over .500 after a 2-8 start, meaning they have now won seven-straight. The Knights scheduled a slew of national tournaments which hurt their record, but now that they are back in the friendly confines of Region 6, they are ready to make a run behind 6-foot-10 top ranked junior in the nation, Wendell Carter Jr. No. 6 Lovett has been the biggest surprise in the region with Coach Ryan Koudele stepping in as head coach and already matching last year’s win total when the Lions went 13-15. Lovett doesn’t have much size, but senior Henry Richardson powers the undersized Lions, leading the team in scoring thanks to his deft three-point touch. No. 8 GAC has had a roller coaster season. Senior Garrett Covington, a Gwinnett Daily Post Super Six selection and Brian Coffey Jr., a recent North Florida-commit, are both no longer on the team. Coach David Eaton has used addition by subtraction to keep the Spartans afloat. They drilled rival No. 10 Holy Innocents’ 77-37 last Friday and then lost by just three, 42-39, to Pace. 6-foot-8 junior Charlie O’Briant scored 18 points and blocked six shots while freshman Hunter McIntosh added 15 points in the win over the rival Golden Bears. Basil Peterson chipped in 14 points and senior Jacob Hoffman had 10. Even after the lopsided loss, Holy Innocents’ is still dangerous, they just need to get healthy with 6-foot-7 center Brent Duncan missing a handful of games due to injury and backup 6-foot-7 center Richard Surdykowski, who has played exceptionally well in Duncan’s absence, has been dealing with a stress fracture in his foot.
Region 7
Team Overall Region
No. 7 Chattooga 19-1 7-1
Model 12-6 6-2
Coosa 8-7 5-3
Darlington 12-7 5-3
Gordon Lee 10-9 4-4
Dade County 6-15 1-8
Armuchee 5-11 0-7
No. 7 Chattooga was hammered at Model on Dec. 1, 57-37 as it looked like the Blue Devils, who finished 23-5 last year, were going to roll to another Region 7 championship. But when the Indians got a crack at Model at home last Friday, they took care of business 58-46 to regain first-place. Model’s only other loss came by 13 at Gordon Lee, 60-47. Chattooga almost lost at Coosa on Jan. 8, as it took overtime to escape the Eagles 70-68. Isaiah Foster poured in 31 points to lead the Indians while Jay Shropshire pitched in 13 points.
Region 8
Team Overall Region
Rabun County 9-10 5-2
Union County 9-10 4-2
Riverside Military 8-8 4-3
Oglethorpe County 6-12 3-3
Greene County 6-12 3-4
Washington-Wilkes 10-8 2-4
Social Circle 8-11 2-5
Wins have been tough to come by in Region 8 with just one team over .500. Last season Greene County went 23-6, Rabun County 21-9 and Union County, a respectable 17-12. If you like three-pointers, Rabun County is the team to see. 5-foot-8 senior Matthew Addis leads the team in scoring at 16.4 points per game, while sophomores Bailey Fisher (12.7 ppg) and Tevan Dixon (11.8) are both double digit threats. Addis is among the entire state’s top gunslingers, leading Georgia in threes made (90) and threes attempted (219), averaging 4.7 made threes a game on 11.5 attempts. Union County features three players scoring in double figures led by junior Lawson Baenninger’s 14 points per game. Inside, 6-foot-8 Chase Shook averages 11 points and over nine rebounds a game with two blocks. Sophomore Crawford Colwell could be one to watch in the future. He averages more than 13 points and five rebounds as a 6-foot-1 forward. The Panthers beat Rabun County 77-74 on Jan. 8 and travel to Rabun on Jan. 29 for a chance to control the region. Riverside Military has beaten Union County and has split the season series with Rabun. On Jan. 26 the Eagles visit Union County and could sneak back into the hunt for the No. 1 seed with a win.