“This is a call...to all my past resignations...”
-- Dave Grohl, Foo Fighters
This is a call...to ALL local and area prep basketball fans. If you’ve had resignations about deciding whether to invest time and emotional energy into your favorite team, NOW would be a good time to put those aside and jump aboard the playoff train.
It’s hard to say whether northeast Georgia is the best area in the state for high school basketball. But if it isn’t, I’d like to cover the area that is.
Some of the more dynamic players in the state reside within our coverage area for AccessWDUN, which spans from Buford to Blue Ridge to Tiger. And they could use ALL the support they can get as the playoffs chug into the second round beginning Wednesday.
The first round is designed to weed out the pretenders. What we have left now are 14 serious contenders for runs at state titles ranging from the Gainesville boys in Class AAAAAA to both Lakeview Academy teams in Class A.
The area is crammed with phenomenal talent at all levels, boys and girls.
On the boys side, K.J. Buffen at Gainesville, which was ranked No. 1 most of the year in Class AAAAAA, is a Division I prospect. Bailey Minor, the Rosser twins (Jared and Jarrel), and Kajuan Hale surely are gaining plenty of notice as well -- and all are just juniors.
Buford, which has been ranked No. 1 in Class AAAAA much of the campaign, touts underclassmen Alex Jones, Marcus Watson, and David Viti, who are each garnering college interest as well.
East Hall has rising stars in Luke Cooper and Sedrion Morse to go with senior Makhi Brown. Banks County has senior Kahmal Wiley, who is averaging a double-double on the season, and also an emerging star in freshman Carl Cleveland.
Lakeview Academy has seniors Josh Randolph and Tre Gober but is chock full of underclassmen like Drew Cottrell, Evan Pitts, Adam Cottrell, and KJ Millwood.
The girls may have even more depth.
Buford and Flowery Branch have been ranked in the top three most of the season in Class AAAAA. The Lady Wolves have eight players that can carry a team from juniors Tory Ozment -- another pontential collegiate standout -- Audrey Weiner, and Jessica Nelson to complement seniors Marissa Bruce, Zikaya Wright and Pamela Johnson. Their two losses have come to perhaps the best girls teams in the state in St. Francis and Wesleyan in Class A, which feature a handful of McDonald’s All-Americans collectively.
Flowery Branch junior Taniyah Worth is a unique talent, who at over six-feet, can shoot outside, bring the ball up the court like a point guard, and play inside. Seniors Julianne Sutton, Queen Scott, and Janoah Williams give them experience and junior Lexi Sengkhemmee and sophomore Caroline Wysocki form a solid backcourt. Of their six losses, three have come to Buford.
In Class A, the Lakeview Academy girls are led by senior Hanna Grogan, who earlier this season set the school’s all-time scoring record for boys and girls combined, overtaking Holly Vandiver Bales and Reno Earls, two of the better players in the area over the last 25 years.
In Class AAAA, West Hall is led by the dynamo Anna McKendree, who can single-handedly shoot down opponents. She recently set the West Hall's girls scoring mark -- and she is just a junior. Combined with seniors Macy Passmore and Avery Prather and a host of role players, the Lady Spartans may have their best shot in program history at a state title run. McKendree alone is worth the price of admission.
And speaking of admission, I’m calling to arms, or rather calling OUT, the Georgia High School Association. As they have admonished others for exploiting players and charging radio and television stations by pay broadcast fees -- which is perfectly fine and understandable. Yet they are expecting fans and relatives to fork over, in some cases, $10 to come and enjoy the action. And they ask that the schools’ student bodies come out in force to provide atmosphere.
Yet, they do not allow schools to offer students any kind of discount. A family of three or four would spend $40, not counting concessions, and would have to do that for possibly five rounds of playoff action. That can put quite a strain on budgets in a month for those who are of average means.
Now who is exploiting things? Again, it is understandable for the GHSA to charge for broadcasts. However, if they want to generate the kind of atmosphere that would make the playoffs even more exciting, they should allow students with proper identification to attend for $1 or $2 at the most so schools can fill arenas.
There is nothing more sad than attending a playoff game and seeing the gym less than one-third full. I have been told small crowds can often be attributed to inflated ticket prices for the playoffs.
As for this week’s matchups, there are some fantastic games that, despite the high price, should be worth it -- and, if not, several of the games will be broadcast live on the airwaves of Jacobs Media.
Locally, the Columbus at West Hall girls matchup in Oakwood (7:30 p.m., Wednesday; WDUN AM 550/102.9 FM) may be the best second round game anywhere. Both teams are considered to have state finalists potential and feature talent-a-plenty. The Lady Spartans will need an extra boost.
The East Hall boys will host Islands (5:30 p.m. Thursday). The Vikings survived a huge upset against Westminster (65-64) in the first round and the Sharks whipped the Wildcats 54-35 during the regular season. They could use all the help they can get.
While those are just two of the better games in the area over the next two days, ALL of the area teams could use our help as they try to show that northeast Georgia is still an epicenter for basketball.
I’m calling on everyone to show NO resignations for their favorite teams and come out in force.
SECOND ROUND STATE PLAYOFF BASKETBALL MATCH-UPS
Start times/days listed where available
Area teams listed in bold
Class AAAAAA
- Effingham County (Region 2, No. 2 seed) at Gainesville boys (Region 8, No. 1), 5:30 p.m. Thursday -- Radio: 1240 AM ESPN
Class AAAAA
- New Hampstead (Region 2, No. 2) at Buford boys (Region 8, No. 1), 6 p.m. Thursday
- Ware County (Region 2, No. 2) at Buford girls (Region 8, No. 1), 6 p.m. Wednesday
- Flowery Branch girls (Region 8, No. 2) at Statesboro (Region 2, No. 1), 6 p.m. Wednesday
Class AAAA
- Columbus (Region 1, No. 2) at West Hall girls (Region 7, No. 1), 7:30 p.m. Wednesday -- Radio: WDUN AM 550/102.9 FM
- Luella (Region 4, No. 3) at Jefferson girls (Region 8, No. 1), 6 p.m. Wednesday
Class AAA
- Islands (Region 3, No. 3) at East Hall boys (Region 7, No. 1), 5:30 p.m. Thursday -- Radio: WDUN AM 550
- Dawson County girls (Region 7, No. 2) at Monroe (Region 1, No. 1), 6 p.m. Wednesday
- North Hall girls (Region 7, No. 3) at Johnson-Savannah (Region 3, No. 1), 6 p.m. Thursday
Class AA
- Josey (Region 4, No. 3) at Banks County boys (Region 8, No. 1), 6 p.m. Thursday
- Vidalia (Region 2, No. 2) at Rabun County girls (Region 8, No. 1), 5:30 p.m. Wednesday
Class A Public
- Towns County boys (No. 15) at Calhoun County (No. 2), 5 p.m. Thursday
Class A Private
- Wesleyan (No. 15) at Lakeview Academy boys (No. 2), 6:30 p.m. Thursday
- Greenforest (No. 14) at Lakeview Academy girls (No. 3), 6 p.m. Wednesday
