Tag Archives: girls basketball

GHSA, Girls Basketball, Girls Game Stories

Genesis Bryant leads No. 1 Lovejoy past No. 8 Tucker in dominant fashion

Contributed by Rob Grubbs   (@RCGJr226070)

Sponsored by:   @sportalspace

January 23, 2018 (Lovejoy, GA): On paper, it appeared to be a great matchup, the Lovejoy Lady Wildcats (19-1, 10-1), ranked No. 1 in AAAAAA, against the No. 8 ranked Tucker Lady Tigers (14-6, 8-3) on Tuesday night, both from Region 4. Tucker had won seven of its last eight and played tough against the Class AAAAAAA No. 1 Westlake Lady Lions before Christmas and seemed poised to push Lovejoy for a chance at region supremacy. But as the game unfolded, it became apparent that while Tucker was a good team, Lovejoy was a great team.

Just as a fine-tuned sportscar has multiple components that work together in unison to provide maximum production, Head Coach Cedric King has built his team in a similar fashion. He has the power of a proven scorer in sophomore Genesis Bryant. Bryant is unique in that she can score at will, but she also brings her entire team for the ride.  They have the proven leadership of senior low post player Kayla Brown who can dominant the game in the paint and provide a defensive stopper.  Add to the mix sophomore Anaya Boyd who has the skills to run the court like a point guard, shoot from the outside and post up against anyone.  Top all of that off with a roster full of role-playing stars who fit the mold to perfection, and Lovejoy can play with anyone.

In the end, the Lady Wildcats completely dismantled the Lady Tigers for a convincing 68-33 win. With the regular season winding down, Coach King has his team steadily improving and ready to make a championship run. Even the reserves who got to play the final minutes for Lovejoy in relief seemed to have something to prove, they play with an edge.

The game started slowly for Lovejoy, they picked up two quick fouls and seemed to be a little hesitant early. The score was tied just passed the halfway point of the first quarter when the Lady Wildcats stepped on the throttle. Bryant and J’Auana Robinson both hit threes and when Mariah Spain drove the length of the floor after a steal for a layup to end the first quarter, they capped off a 12-1 run in just three minutes.

Bryant was brilliant throughout, she scored 14 points in the first half alone to extend the lead. As good as she was at creating scoring opportunities, Kayla Brown, the only senior on the roster,  was equally impressive down low,  she dominated the middle and imposed her will on the glass, gathering 11 rebounds. Tucker could not keep up with all the offensive fire power of the Wildcats.

The second quarter was an offensive clinic by Lovejoy, they scored on a perfect inbound pass from Robinson to Brown, a baseball pass from Bryant the entire length of the court to Brown for an easy layup and a deep three from Avanna Preston. Everything was working in the repertoire.

In the second half, Coach King substituted in waves, he seemed to have unlimited depth at his disposal. Eight of his players had points in the first half and two more joined the scorer’s sheet in the second half. Each player seemed to bring a specific skill set that complimented the team as a whole. After a three-point play by Bryant near the end of the third quarter, the Lady Wildcats had extended the lead to 58-20.  Lovejoy was solid from the charity stripe as well, hitting 22-of-33 free throws (67%).

For Tucker, the game got out of hand quickly and took them out of their game plan.  Senior guard Kierra Guthrie was able to dribble and penetrate, but the shots would not fall for the Lady Tigers and the constant pressure eventually wore them down.  Junior Jasani Buchanan continued to fight, she scored early in the third quarter off a steal and later scored on a nice drive to the basket. She led the Lady Tigers in scoring with 10 points.

Senior guard Kayla Baise would make two three-pointers in the fourth, hopefully giving Tucker something they can pull from the rubble to carry into the next game.

As bad as the final score, the Lady Tigers are still in third-place in Region 4-AAAAAA, only one game behind No. 7 Stephenson for second.  It is time to put this one behind them and finish strong in their final four games in the regular season, including their finale at home against the same Lovejoy team.

Afterwards, Coach King still saw room improvement, but was pleased overall. “Our girls competed and executed well, but we still need to improve our mental toughness. We tell them, don’t let anyone steal your joy while playing, which is important to getting better.”  He also cited the play of junior Preston as key, “Avanna played a big part of the win tonight, I was proud of her, but as a team, there are a lot of areas we can improve.” The thought of Lovejoy getting better and mentally tougher should cause a lot of concern for the rest of class AAAAAA and with their youth and good coaching, they will be good for a while.

Top Performers

Tucker
Jasani Buchanan – 10 points, 5 rebounds
Summer Dilwood – 6 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist
Kayla Blaise – 6 points

Lovejoy
Genesis Bryant – 23 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 steals
Anna Boyd – 15 points, 7 rebounds
Kayla Brown – 5 points, 11 rebounds

GHSA, Girls Basketball, Girls Game Stories

Savannah Samuel stars with 23 of 29 River Ridge second half points to carry Lady Knights past Sequoyah, 54-48

River Ridge 54, Sequoyah 48

River Ridge moved into third-place in R6-AAAAAA

The War Lodge was host to an important Region 6-AAAAAA matchup between Sequoyah (16-5, 7-4) and the River Ridge Knights (15-5, 8-3). Deadlocked at 7-3 apiece in the standings, the winner would control third-place in the top-heavy region while No. 3 Harrison (16-4, 11-0) and No. 4 Creekview (13-6, 8-2) manned the top spots. The Lady Knights shook off a nightmarish opening four minutes to regain their composure and methodically chip away at an early deficit, eventually gaining control and closing out a 54-48 road win behind sophomore Savannah Samuel’s sensational night.

The Lady Chiefs jumped all over the Knights, forcing four quick turnovers and leading 8-0 at the 6:09 mark. Coach Jason Taylor laid into his players, exclaiming they were about to get ran out of the gym if they didn’t take better care of the ball. Another two minutes went by and things didn’t get much better, the Lady Chiefs up 14-4 as Sydney Rosant and AnnaLynne Bennett scored six apiece in the frame.

River Ridge would close on an 11-4 run to end the quarter down 18-15, Mary Allen Mansell sparking the Lady Knights with six early points and Samuel adding five.

The two teams traded buckets in the second quarter. Peyton Satterfield got hot with two threes for Sequoyah, but River Ridge’s size began to pose a problem as 6-foot-2 Lexi Palmer and 6-foot Faith Arthur scored four points apiece around the basket. Arthur added a contested jumper in the lane at the buzzer as the Knights entered the half trailing 28-25.

In the third quarter, Samuel took over. The 6-foot-1 wing led the charge as the Knights pounded the smaller Lady Chiefs on the boards. Samuel’s first six points of the quarter all came on put-backs as River Ridge finally got over the hump and seized their first lead of the game at 33-31 with 3:55 remaining.

At the end of three, River Ridge held a 37-36 advantage. Samuel scored 10 points in the quarter while Arthur crashed the glass alongside Samuel for second chance opportunities.

The Knights shut down senior leader Alyssa Cagle, who had only two points, both coming from the free throw line in the first quarter. With Cagle unable to find a field goal, the Lady Chiefs scrambled for baskets. Sequoyah trailed 41-40 before Samuel drilled a three in the corner to go up four with 3:33 left.

Samuel would finish with a game-high 30 points, scoring 23 of her team’s 29 second half points.

Macy Williams knocked down two free throws for the Chiefs to cut the lead to 46-44 with 2:18 to play, but Samuel continued to score at will, netting 13 points in the final frame, going 8-of-10 from the line.

Rosant floated in a tough bucket in the lane with 54 seconds remaining to make it a 50-48 game, but the Lady Chiefs were unable to keep the ball out of Samuel’s hands as she punished them from the line.

Sequoyah had a last gasp to make it a one possession game, but the Lady Knights got a crucial stop that resulted in a Leigh Codiniera rebound and two free throws at the other end with 13 seconds left to ice the game 54-48.

My Take

Cherokee County girls basketball just got that much more interesting. It would be too cliché to say a star was born, considering Savannah Samuel has averaged 20.9 points and 5.6 rebounds, but the 6-foot-1 sophomore transfer from Collins Hill has changed the outlook of an entire program. Gwinnett County’s loss is Cherokee County’s gain. Samuel was phenomenal, taking over the game against one the state’s best programs over the past four years. A lanky, fluid athlete that’s all arms and legs, Samuel can get to the hoop and finish through contact. She can stretch teams out to the three-point line and is a nuisance on the glass. She has a High Major D-I ceiling and could be one of the best players the county has seen in quite some time, a county with a rich tradition of girls basketball. River Ridge’s frontline did major damage against the Chiefs; Sequoyah’s one glaring weakness. While the entire roster took a backseat to Samuel in the second half, Faith Arthur and Lexi Palmer were relentless on the boards, taking Samuel’s lead. Arthur has a physical, sturdy frame that allows her to play inside and out. With three players standing over 6-foot, the Knights have the ability to dominate the paint. Freshman Leigh Codiniera showed promise and composure while handling the point guard duties. She went 4-of-4 from the line including the final two points of the game. Depth will be a major issue for the Knights come state tournament time. Outside of their starters, Sabrina Roberts and Emily Ruth combined for three rebounds and one steal; the only stats contributed by the bench.

Sequoyah looked like they were going to blitz the Lady Knights, coming out with intense defensive pressure, but eventually River Ridge settled in and the Lady Chiefs’ large lead evaporated by the end of the first quarter. Sydney Rosant came out firing. There’s not many shots the high-scoring junior won’t take. She was finding baskets early on and hit her season average with 13 points. The insertion of AnnaLynne Bennett into the starting lineup over tallest player, 5-foot-9 Emily Seres, paid early dividends. The engine that makes Sequoyah go, unsigned senior Alyssa Cagle, was held to two first quarter free throws. While she was unable to score, she affected the game in other ways, the 5-foot-6 bulldog leading the Lady Chiefs with eight rebounds, five assists and three steals. Her offense hasn’t been as consistent this year, but credit some of that to her deferring to Rosant. Sophomore Macy Williams had six points. She’s instant energy off the bench for Coach Derrick DeWitt. Williams is the next in a long line of tenacious Lady Chief guards. She is a major competitor on the floor.

Top Performers

River Ridge
Savannah Samuel – 30 points, 9 rebounds, 1 block
Faith Arthur – 8 points, 13 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 2 blocks
Lexi Palmer – 6 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals, 2 blocks
Mary Allen Mansell – 6 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
Leigh Codiniera – 4 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal

Sequoyah
Sydney Rosant – 13 points, 2 rebounds
Peyton Satterfield – 10 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals
Macy Williams – 6 points, 1 rebound, 2 steals
AnnaLynne Bennett – 6 points, 3 rebounds, 1 block
Colby Carden – 5 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals
Alyssa Cagle – 2 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals

GHSA, Girls Basketball, Girls Rankings

Week 10 Girls Rankings

Class AAAAAAA

  1. Westlake (17-1)
  2. Collins Hill (17-2)
  3. Norcross (18-3)
  4. Newton (16-2)
  5. Cherokee (18-2)
  6. North Forsyth (19-2)
  7. South Gwinnett (17-1)
  8. Hillgrove (12-4)
  9. Colquitt County (17-4)
  10. McEachern (10-5) 

Class AAAAAA

  1. Lovejoy (18-1)
  2. Winder-Barrow (15-4)
  3. Harrison (15-4)
  4. Creekview (12-6)
  5. Lanier (17-3)
  6. Forest Park (14-3)
  7. Stephenson (13-5)
  8. Tucker (14-5)
  9. Douglas County (15-5)
  10. Alpharetta (16-3) 

Class AAAAA

  1. Buford (17-3)
  2. Flowery Branch (17-4)
  3. Harris County (19-2)
  4. Villa Rica (15-0)
  5. Arabia Mountain (15-1)
  6. Bainbridge (19-3)
  7. Ware County (17-2)
  8. Dutchtown (16-3)
  9. Carrollton (15-4)
  10. Rome (15-2)

Class AAAA

  1. Carver-Columbus (20-1)
  2. Henry County (18-1)
  3. Spalding (15-2)
  4. Northwest Whitfield (18-2)
  5. Luella (13-4)
  6. Madison County (15-5)
  7. Baldwin (19-2)
  8. Marist (15-2)
  9. Westover (17-2)
  10. Burke County (12-5)

Class AAA

  1. Greater Atlanta Christian (15-3)
  2. Beach (18-1)
  3. Franklin County (21-0)
  4. Central-Macon (16-2)
  5. Johnson-Savannah (12-5)
  6. Lovett (15-4)
  7. North Murray (14-5)
  8. Hart County (16-5)
  9. Tattnall County (16-5)
  10. Pierce County (13-4) 

Class AA

  1. Laney (20-0)
  2. Banks County (17-4)
  3. Washington County (15-4)
  4. Putnam County (17-2)
  5. Josey (18-2)
  6. Swainsboro (15-3)
  7. Rabun County (15-4)
  8. Model (15-3)
  9. Early County (15-5)
  10. Dodge County (15-3) 

Class A-Private

  1. Holy Innocents’ (18-1)
  2. Wesleyan (17-2)
  3. St. Francis (14-3)
  4. Our Lady of Mercy (16-1)
  5. Calvary Day (19-1)
  6. Stratford Academy (16-2)
  7. Christian Heritage (15-3)
  8. Landmark Christian (9-8)
  9. Eagle’s Landing Christian Academy (14-5)
  10. Athens Academy (17-3) 

Class A-Public

  1. Greenville (18-1)
  2. Pelham (18-1)
  3. Telfair County (18-2)
  4. Wilcox County (14-4)
  5. Wheeler County (15-2)
  6. Macon County (14-4)
  7. Marion County (16-4)
  8. Bowdon (14-4)
  9. Central-Talbotton (12-4)
  10. Terrell County (14-4)

 

No one in Class AAAAAAA suffered a loss this week as the rankings remain set in stone. No. 1 Westlake blitzed Campbell 80-32, No. 3 Norcross earned an outstanding 62-58 win over Class 5A No. 1 Buford at the BCB MLK Classic and No. 5 Cherokee dumped rival Sequoyah 68-53. No. 6 North Forsyth completed a season sweep of Lambert with a 46-30 win. No. 7 South Gwinnett edged Brookwood 48-45, No. 9 Colquitt County grinded out a 39-24 win over Camden County and No. 10 McEachern picked up a 65-56 victory against Wenonah (AL) at the BallN Powher Prep MLK Classic.

Preseason Class AAAAAA No. 1 Northview (16-5) drops out of the rankings. The Lady Titans have not played up to their potential yet this season and are bounced out after a 37-34 loss to Lambert, who was missing two starters. No. 2 Winder-Barrow has a big week as they visit No. 5 Lanier on Tuesday. The Lady Doggs lost 63-58 on December 15 in their first meeting with McDonald’s All-American Olivia Nelson-Ododa sidelined. No. 10 Alpharetta clings onto the final spot in the Top 10 after a disappointing 61-46 loss to Marietta at the Johns Creek MLK Showcase. Into the rankings for the first time since Week 1 is No. 9 Douglas County. The Lady Tigers have shaken off a 1-3 start to the season and have won 7-straight, including a 66-54 win over Fayette County at the J4Sports MLK Classic where All-State forward Amari Robinson poured in a career-high 41 points.

No. 1 meets No. 2 in Class AAAAA as No. 2 Flowery Branch tries to finally get the monkey off their back when they host No. 1 Buford on Tuesday. The Lady Falcons lost 58-48 in their first meeting this season after losing thrice last year. No. 3 Harris County defeated No. 6 Bainbridge 59-52 in overtime, sending the Bearcats down two spots. Undefeated No. 4 Villa Rica hosts No. 9 Carrollton in a pivotal Region 7 showdown while No. 10 Rome, back in the rankings, waits for a shot at both. Fayette County (13-5) departs after their loss to Douglas County.

Class AAAA No. 1 Carver-Columbus drilled Americus-Sumter 76-41. No. 3 Spalding earned a nice 53-49 win over Class 3A No. 5 Johnson-Savannah 53-49. No. 4 Northwest Whitfield avoided setbacks against rivals Pickens (72-61) and Dalton (52-49). No. 6 Madison County took care of business on the road at Jefferson 54-38. No. 7 Baldwin leaps No. 8 Marist after knocking Cross Creek (14-6) from the Top 10 with a 61-43 clinic and beating Class 2A No. 3 Washington County 57-47. The Braves host returnee No. 10 Burke County on Friday with a share of Region 3 first-place on the line. The Lady Bears beat the Braves 55-48 earlier this season. Burke County is coming off a 49-47 win over Cross Creek.

No. 1 GAC’s hold over Class AAA has loosened since Auburn-signee Robyn Benton re-tore her ACL. The Lady Spartans still managed wins over Union County (66-53) and Dawson County (69-52) without her. No. 3 Franklin County is sitting pretty at 21-0 while No. 5 Johnson-Savannah slips two spots, challenging themselves but coming up short with losses to Class AA No. 1 Laney 73-53 and Class 4A No. 3 Spalding. Region 2 is heating up as debutant No. 10 Pierce County beat No. 9 Tattnall County 54-51 in Blackshear. The Lady Bears replace Sonoraville (13-5) following the Lady Phoenix’s 60-51 loss to Pickens.

In Class AA, No. 1 Laney earned a 73-53 win over Class AAA No. 5 Johnson-Savannah. The rest of Top 4 all suffered losses. No. 2 Banks County retains their ranking after getting upset at Monticello 51-41. No. 3 Washington County slides up a spot thanks to wins over Evans (54-43) and East Laurens (72-52), overshadowing their tough 57-47 loss to Class 4A No. 7 Baldwin. No. 4 Putnam County climbs a position after sweeping No. 7 Rabun County, 56-47 and winning at Elbert County 52-47. No. 6 Swainsboro tumbles three spots. The Lady Tigers beat St. Vincent’s 48-45 but lost to Statesboro 52-42 after clipping the Blue Devils back on December 2. No. 5 Josey cracks the Top 5 just ahead of Swainsboro. In their lone meeting with mutual opponent Statesboro, the Lady Eagles won 55-43 in late November. No. 10 Dodge County has fallen all the way to the final rung of the rankings after losing for the second time to East Laurens, 55-47. Bryan County (16-3) was the unfortunate casualty this week, losing 50-47 at Metter. Debuting in the poll is No. 9 Early County. The Lady Bobcats are powered by 6-foot-2 freshman Mykayla Timpson. The post presence is averaging 19.1 points, 9.8 rebounds and 4.3 blocks. Early County has already matched last year’s win total and four of their five losses have come in season sweeps to Class 5A No. 6 Bainbridge and Class 4A No. 9 Westover. The Bobcats’ resume is highlighted by a 68-61 win at Fitzgerald and a 66-43 rout of Class A-Public No. 10 Terrell County on Tuesday.

Class A-Private saw Prince Avenue Christian (17-2) have their 15-game winning streak snapped by No. 10 Athens Academy 51-44 and get replaced in the poll by the Spartans. The Region 8 race is tightening up as Lakeview Academy (13-7, 9-1) holds a slim lead on the Wolverines (8-1) and Athens Academy (7-2). No. 9 ELCA received 44 points from freshman phenom Weronika Hipp in their 73-42 win at Lake Oconee Academy.

Class A-Public is hotly contested in the middle of the pack, but up top, No. 1 Greenville and No. 2 Pelham are starting to separate themselves. The Lady Patriots crushed No. 6 Macon County 90-59 as the Lady Bulldogs also suffered a 56-47 loss to newly ranked No. 9 Central-Talbotton. The defending state champion Lady Hornets avenged their 61-60 loss to No. 10 Terrell County by topping the Green Wave 63-43. No. 5 Wheeler County took care of Woodville-Tompkins 62-47. No. 7 Marion County travels to Central-Talbotton on Tuesday. Georgia Military College (17-1) exits the Top 10 after a 48-43 loss at Greene County.

GHSA, Girls Basketball, Girls Rankings

Week 8 Girls Rankings

Class AAAAAAA

  1. Westlake (13-1)
  2. Collins Hill (14-2)
  3. Norcross (14-3)
  4. Newton (13-2)
  5. Cherokee (13-2)
  6. North Forsyth (14-2)
  7. South Gwinnett (14-1)
  8. Colquitt County (14-3)
  9. North Cobb (13-2)
  10. McEachern (7-5)

Class AAAAAA

  1. Harrison (13-3)
  2. Lovejoy (15-1)
  3. Winder-Barrow (11-3)
  4. Alpharetta (13-1)
  5. Sequoyah (12-2)
  6. Forest Park (13-2)
  7. Northview (11-4)
  8. Lanier (13-3)
  9. Creekview (9-5)
  10. Stephenson (10-5)

Class AAAAA

  1. Buford (11-2)
  2. Dutchtown (14-2)
  3. Flowery Branch (13-4)
  4. Harris County (13-2)
  5. Bainbridge (16-2)
  6. Villa Rica (12-0)
  7. Arabia Mountain (13-1)
  8. Ware County (11-2)
  9. Carrollton (11-4)
  10. Fayette County (10-4)

Class AAAA

  1. Carver-Columbus (16-1)
  2. Henry County (15-0)
  3. Spalding (12-2)
  4. Luella (13-3)
  5. Northwest Whitfield (13-2)
  6. Baldwin (14-1)
  7. Madison County (10-5)
  8. Marist (12-2)
  9. Americus-Sumter (13-1)
  10. Jefferson (11-4)

Class AAA

  1. Greater Atlanta Christian (11-3)
  2. Beach (13-1)
  3. Johnson-Savannah (9-3)
  4. Franklin County (16-0)
  5. Central-Macon (12-2)
  6. Lovett (12-4)
  7. Hart County (11-4)
  8. Peach County (11-4)
  9. Tattnall County (12-4)
  10. Haralson County (11-1)

Class AA

  1. Laney (14-0)
  2. Dodge County (12-1)
  3. Putnam County (12-1)
  4. Rabun County (12-2)
  5. Swainsboro (11-2)
  6. Josey (15-1)
  7. Model (11-3)
  8. Banks County (13-3)
  9. Washington County (10-3)
  10. Metter (11-3)

Class A-Private

  1. Holy Innocents’ (14-1)
  2. Wesleyan (12-2)
  3. St. Francis (9-3)
  4. Our Lady of Mercy (13-1)
  5. Calvary Day (14-1)
  6. Stratford Academy (11-2)
  7. Prince Avenue Christian (12-1)
  8. Landmark Christian (7-7)
  9. Christian Heritage (12-3)
  10. Athens Academy (12-2)

Class A-Public

  1. Telfair County (14-1)
  2. Greenville (13-1)
  3. Pelham (12-1)
  4. Wheeler County (10-2)
  5. Macon County (10-2)
  6. Terrell County (10-2)
  7. Georgia Military College (12-0)
  8. Wilcox County (9-4)
  9. Marion County (13-2)
  10. Bowdon (11-3)

 

Yet again, there is no movement in Class AAAAAAA, but No. 10 McEachern is on the verge of dropping out if they suffer an in-state loss. Their saving grace with their 7-5 record is that three losses have come in national tournaments. The Lady Indians’ listed results keep changing on MaxPreps, making it even harder to follow. A team that has been easy to track however has been No. 1 Westlake. The Lady Lions steam-rolled Wheeler 68-43 and Eagle’s Landing 78-51. No. 4 Newton beat rival Rockdale County 70-44 on the road. No. 8 Colquitt County has won 8-straight since their 55-46 loss to Westlake. The Lady Packers went into Camden County and earned a 51-42 win followed by a 55-34 thumping of Tift County.

No. 1 Harrison holds firm atop Class AAAAAA with No. 2 Lovejoy and No. 3 Winder-Barrow scoring great wins, close behind. The Lady Hoyas beat No. 5 Sequoyah in Hickory Flat 60-51. Lovejoy sent shockwaves through the state with a wildly impressive 55-49 win over Class 5A No. 1 Buford at the Big South Shootout. The Lady Doggs edged their evenly matched rivals, Class 5A No. 3 Flowery Branch, 50-49 in Hall County, Olivia Nelson-Ododa with 29 points and the game-winning free throw. No. 4 Alpharetta made a statement in Region 7 with their 59-53 win over the bipolar No. 7 Northview Lady Titans. River Ridge (11-4) and Northside-Warner Robins (11-3) exit the Top 10 after the Knights lost 54-36 to newly ranked No. 9 Creekview while the Eagles dropped in overtime at Valdosta 54-52. No. 10 Stephenson reenters the poll with a 38-36 win at Grayson.

In Class AAAAA, No. 1 Buford still has the target on their back even after their loss to Lovejoy. No. 3 Flowery Branch finally slips a spot, giving way to No. 2 Dutchtown. Region 1 places No. 4 Harris County and No. 5 Bainbridge. The Lady Tigers drilled Warner Robins 64-33 while the Bearcats took out Veterans 61-38. No. 6 Villa Rica can officially say they are the team to beat in Region 7. The Wildcats knocked Rome (10-2) from the Top 10 with a 66-51 victory and now sit at 7-0 in the region, with No. 9 Carrollton in second-place at 5-1, their lone loss to Villa Rica. Replacing Rome is No. 10 Fayette County. The Lady Tigers beat McIntosh 55-37 and travel to Starr’s Mill (11-4) on Tuesday with first-place in Region 3 up for grabs.

There were no changes in Class AAAA.  No. 2 Henry County blasted Locust Grove 81-49. No. 3 Spalding dispatched of Southwest DeKalb 66-52. No. 6 Baldwin holds onto their spot in the middle of the rankings even after suffering their first loss of the season at the Big South Shootout to Class 3A No. 2 Beach, 66-47.  No. 7 Madison County grinded out a 60-55 win at St. Pius X. No. 8 Marist did the same, beating the Golden Lions 28-26.

Class AAA No. 2 Beach looked good at Duluth, beating Baldwin and taking care of Duluth 53-33 at the Big South Shootout. No. 4 Franklin County has quietly run their record up to 16-0. They beat Stephens County at Currahee Arena 67-23. The Lady Lions will see a major test on Friday as they travel to No. 7 Hart County. No. 5 Central-Macon beat Southwest-Macon 61-46 and sent the Patriots out of the Class 2A Top 10. No. 10 Haralson County sinks three spots after losing to Sonoraville 60-51.

Region 8-AA has been one of the best groupings in the classification this year with No. 3 Putnam County, No. 4 Rabun County and No. 8 Banks County. The top five teams in the region (Elbert County & Monticello included) have a combined 57-18 record. Putnam County drops one position this week after Elbert County defeated them 54-52. Banks County took care of Elbert County 49-38 at Elbert and now the Lady Leopards have a Region 8 championship rematch at Rabun County on Tuesday to further sort out the logjam atop of the standings. Region 2 has some talent as well with No. 5 Swainsboro and newly ranked No. 10 Metter, who replaces Southwest-Macon after the Patriots lost to Central-Macon and Westside-Macon. Swainsboro won at St. Vincent’s 59-46, the much-improved Saints dropping to 10-2 after a 12-16 season. Metter gets a chance to prove their worth as they visit Swainsboro on Tuesday for a crucial region bout.

The trusty Sandy’s Spiel Rankings survived a coin-flip game in Class A-Private as No. 1 Holy Innocents’ defeated their bitter rival No. 2 Wesleyan 48-34 at Wesleyan, leading to no changes in the poll this week. No. 5 Calvary Day earned a nice 60-49 win over Woodville-Tompkins while No. 7 Prince Avenue Christian dispatched of prestigious Region 8 foe Lakeview Academy 54-34 at Lakeview.

In Class A-Public, Turner County (9-4) was bounced from the poll with a 71-56 loss at No. 8 Wilcox County. No. 9 Marion County slips two spots after an upset loss to Manchester, 55-46. Things don’t get easier for the Eagles as they travel to No. 2 Greenville on Tuesday.  The same goes for Turner County, as they host No. 1 Telfair County on Tuesday. Debuting in the Top 10 is No. 10 Bowdon. Over in the predominately private Region 6, the Red Devils have been sneaky good, sitting at 11-3 after a 9-16 campaign. Bowdon has strong wins over Class 7A 9-6 Kennesaw Mountain (43-42), Class 2A 10-4 Rockmart (66-49), Class A-Private 8-3 Mt. Paran (51-44) and Class 4A 9-5 Central-Carroll (50-39). Their three losses have come against No. 2 Greenville 78-55, at rival Bremen 64-43 (who they beat 62-47 in the rematch) and to Class 5A No. 6 Villa Rica 61-46.

GHSA, Girls Rankings

Week 6 Girls Rankings

Class AAAAAAA

  1. Westlake (9-0)
  2. Collins Hill (10-1)
  3. Norcross (12-3)
  4. Newton (10-1)
  5. Cherokee (10-1)
  6. North Forsyth (11-2)
  7. South Gwinnett (9-1)
  8. Colquitt County (8-3)
  9. North Cobb (9-2)
  10. McEachern (5-3)

Class AAAAAA

  1. Harrison (8-2)
  2. Northview (8-2)
  3. Lovejoy (10-1)
  4. Winder-Barrow (9-3)
  5. Sequoyah (10-1)
  6. Alpharetta (12-1)
  7. Forest Park (10-2)
  8. Lanier (10-3)
  9. Northside-Warner Robins (7-1)
  10. Centennial (7-3)

Class AAAAA

  1. Buford (9-1)
  2. Flowery Branch (8-3)
  3. Dutchtown (12-1)
  4. Harris County (8-2)
  5. Bainbridge (12-2)
  6. Villa Rica (9-0)
  7. Arabia Mountain (11-1)
  8. Carrollton (7-2)
  9. Cedar Shoals (8-3)
  10. Ware County (6-2)

Class AAAA

  1. Carver-Columbus (12-0)
  2. Henry County (10-0)
  3. Spalding (10-0)
  4. Luella (11-2)
  5. Madison County (7-3)
  6. Northwest Whitfield (11-2)
  7. Marist (10-2)
  8. Baldwin (8-0)
  9. Jefferson (8-3)
  10. Americus-Sumter (9-1)

Class AAA

  1. Greater Atlanta Christian (8-1)
  2. Beach (11-1)
  3. Johnson-Savannah (8-3)
  4. Franklin County (10-0)
  5. Central-Macon (8-1)
  6. Lovett (10-3)
  7. Haralson County (7-0)
  8. Hart County (6-3)
  9. Peach County (8-3)
  10. Dawson County (7-3)

Class AA

  1. Laney (10-0)
  2. Putnam County (8-0)
  3. Rabun County (9-1)
  4. Dodge County (10-1)
  5. Swainsboro (9-2)
  6. Josey (13-1)
  7. Model (10-3)
  8. Banks County (8-3)
  9. Washington County (7-2)
  10. Dublin (6-1)

Class A-Private

  1. Holy Innocents’ (9-1)
  2. Wesleyan (8-1)
  3. St. Francis (8-3)
  4. Our Lady of Mercy (9-1)
  5. Christian Heritage (9-1)
  6. Calvary Day (11-1)
  7. Stratford Academy (6-2)
  8. Landmark Christian (6-4)
  9. Lakeview Academy (5-4)
  10. Prince Avenue Christian (6-1)

Class A-Public

  1. Telfair County (11-1)
  2. Greenville (9-1)
  3. Pelham (9-1)
  4. Wheeler County (9-2)
  5. Macon County (6-1)
  6. Woodville-Tompkins (9-4)
  7. Terrell County (7-2)
  8. Marion County (10-1)
  9. Georgia Military College (9-0)
  10. Turner County (5-2)

Class AAAAAAA No. 1 Westlake took home the Peach State Classic Championship, beating No. 8 Colquitt County 55-46, Maynard Jackson 77-36 and Tucker in the championship game, 61-40; three wins against teams that were ranked last week. No. 2 Collins Hill was just as impressive with a 56-48 win over Class 5A No. 1 Buford at the Hawks-Naismith Holiday Classic. No. 3 Norcross went 2-2 at the CresCom Bank Invitational.

No. 6 Alpharetta tumbles four spots in Class AAAAAA after losing to debutant No. 10 Centennial, 37-34. No. 4 Winder-Barrow finished 2-2 at the CresCom Bank Invitational. No. 8 Lanier is down one position after losing to Class 5A No. 7 Arabia Mountain 59-48. Tucker (7-4) departs from the Top 10 even after a 67-61 upset of Class 4A No. 4 Luella at the Peach State Classic. The Lady Tigers got beat by Westlake and lost on Dec. 15 to Mt. Zion-Jonesboro 61-57; a defeat that would have knocked Tucker from the polls last week if they would have reported the score to MaxPreps on time.

There are three new faces in the Class AAAAA Top 10. No. 7 Arabia Mountain, No. 9 Cedar Shoals and No. 10 Ware County. The Rams were squeezed out of the poll a few weeks ago but reemerge following 10-straight wins including a 59-48 win over Lanier. The Jaguars upset Class 7A No. 9 North Cobb 55-47 to earn their spot while the Gators won the Shane’s Rib Shack Tournament Championship by beating Class 2A No. 5 Swainsboro 62-53 and Class 4A No. 7 Marist 49-42. Out of the rankings are Maynard Jackson (7-2), Eagle’s Landing (9-5) and Southwest DeKalb (7-5). The Jags got hammered at the Peach State Classic on their home floor by Class 7A No. 1 Westlake 77-36 and by Class 4A No. 4 Luella 67-49. The Eagles suffered a 40-37 loss at St. Pius X while the Panthers went 2-2 at the Tarkanian Classic. At the top of the rankings, No. 1 Buford suffered their first loss of the year to Class 7A No. 2 Collins Hill. No. 2 Flowery Branch finished 2-1 at the KSA Holiday Tournament while No. 4 Harris County tallied a 2-2 showing at the CresCom Bank Invitational, beating Fayette County 68-59 in the process.

In Class AAAA, No. 1 Carver-Columbus won the William H. Shaw Christmas Tournament. No. 4 Luella clawed their way to a 2-1 record at the Peach State Classic. No. 5 Madison County jumps No. 6 Northwest Whitfield after their 50-42 win over Class 2A No. 8 Banks County. No. 9 Jefferson defeated West Hall 47-40, denying the Lady Spartans reentry into the Top 10 for at least another week.

No. 3 Johnson-Savannah climbs two spots in Class AAA thanks to their revenge win over No. 2 Beach, 48-43. No. 6 Lovett falls two positions after losing to Dutch Forks, SC 50-42 and Greenbrier 48-37 at the Savannah River Shootout. No. 5 Central-Macon won the State Bank & Trust Championship with a 65-44 win over Class 2A No. 9 Washington County. No. 10 Dawson County clings onto the final spot after a 61-45 loss at West Hall.

No. 1 Laney no longer seems unbeatable in Class AA. The Wildcats slipped by Cross Creek 62-59 and had to rally from down 25-8 to newly ranked No. 6 Josey to pull out a 70-57 victory. The Josey Lady Eagles pop up in the rankings at 13-1. With their measuring stick game finally in tow against Laney, there is confidence that Josey is a legit Top 10 team. Last season the Eagles put together an 18-9 record, but were steamrolled by Laney 74-32, 72-35 and 76-33. Outside of Laney’s two scares, the biggest result in the classification came in Region 8 where No. 2 Putnam County blasted No. 3 Rabun County 82-53. Jashanti Simmons poured in 25 points followed by Hailey Hyman’s 22 and Rykia Pennamon’s 18 to overpowered the LadyCats and Georgia Stockton’s game-high 38 points. Up three spots is No. 4 Dodge County, who continues to be a nightmare for larger schools. The Squaws stunned Wayne County 52-51 by outscoring the Lady Jackets 32-11 in the fourth quarter. Speaking of Class AA on Class AAAAA crime, No. 9 Washington County defeated Warner Robins 52-47.

Class A-Private No. 3 St. Francis went 3-1 at the CresCom Bank Invitational, beating Class 5A No. 4 Harris County 72-48 and eventually falling in the championship game to the No. 5 ranked team in the nation, New York’s Christ the King 67-61. No. 6 Calvary Day rises two spots after drilling Class A-Public No. 6 Woodville-Tompkins 69-40. Fellowship Christian (3-6) exits the Top 10. The one-man show of Colorado-signee Cameron Swartz hasn’t been enough to win games. They fell to No. 8 Landmark Christian 60-58 and finished 1-2 at the War Lodge Invitational. Replacing the Lady Paladins is returnee No. 10 Prince Avenue Christian.

In Class A-Public, No. 7 Terrell County’s win over No. 3 Pelham was short-lived, the Green Wave dropping four spots after a 46-44 loss to No. 6 Woodville-Tompkins, the Lady Wolverines still yet to be beaten by a fellow Class A-Public school. No. 2 Greenville pushed Class 4A No. 1 Carver-Columbus to the brink, 78-72 at the William H. Shaw Christmas Tournament. At the same event, No. 8 Marion County won the small schools bracket. Mitchell County (4-3) exits the poll on a two-game losing streak. They are replaced by No. 10 Turner County (5-2).