With the first half of the basketball season over, it's time to watch the region races catch fire.
Yep, high school basketball is about to get really good, and 2024 is already hot.
Friday's slate has a few games that will answer many questions, especially on the boys' side in Region 8-4A, as it's crossover day for the region -- North vs. South. It really should be East vs. West, but anyway.
The South side of the sub-region houses four top-10 teams in North Oconee, Madison County, Seckinger and Walnut Grove, with only one north team ranked: Cherokee Bluff.
That brings us to the best game on paper Friday: No. 10 Cherokee Bluff plays host to No. 4 North Oconee. The Bears have absolutely been on fire since the loss to East Forsyth in overtime in December, winning nine in a row, including their first Lanierland title last week. But the test of all tests will arrive in Flowery Branch on Friday.
North Oconee hammered North Hall in December -- a team Bluff has beaten twice in overtime in less than a week. The Titans have also beaten East Forsyth. It's no secret the path to the playoffs goes through the south side of the subregion, but I think Bluff has the weapons to go toe-to-toe with the Titans. Will it be a night when the Titans remember the Bears? It could happen, but keep an eye on this battle on Friday regardless of how it ends.
Chestatee's woes continue on defense. The offense is not the problem. Colton Wilbanks scored 44 points in the loss to East Hall on Tuesday, and the War Eagles put up 84 as a team. The only problem was that they gave up 89 to East Hall in the loss. If the War Eagles are to push the ranked teams in the region, the defensive effort has to improve. They'll find that out Friday when No. 7 Seckinger rolls into town. The Jaguars are the only team to beat North Oconee in the region and will take advantage of a poor Chestatee defensive effort. This game will be a massive test for the War Eagles. They have it in them, but if the defense continues giving up more points than they can score, the Ls will continue to rack up.
East Hall travels to Danielsville in another interesting battle to take on No. 6 Madison County. The Vikings are still a work in progress. They are young, and just like their subregion brothers, Chestatee, defense has been the biggest issue. The Vikings have proven they can play with the south subregion, losing to No. 9 Walnut Grove by just two points in December. Sure, that's a moral victory, but it also proves they are getting really close with a very young roster. It's still early for this squad, and the improvement has been large for the program thus far. If they're going to make a push to the playoffs, that improvement needs to continue to go up, and a win or a close loss to Madison County will be proof the Vikings are getting closer.
East Forsyth has beaten both Chestatee and Cherokee Bluff in sub-region play but hasn't done well against the south side of the subregion, losing to Madison County and North Oconee. On Friday, the Broncos will travel to Cedar Shoals with a really good shot at getting their first win against the other side. EaFo heads into action on a two-game winning streak. They've shown improvement throughout the first half of a really tough schedule. A win on Friday over the Jaguars will go a long way in their quest for a postseason berth.
HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL SCHEDULE FOR Friday, Jan. 5
Athens Academy at Union County, 6 p.m.*
East Forsyth at Cedar Shoals, 6 p.m.*
East Hall at Madison County, 6 p.m.*
East Jackson at Providence Christian, 6 p.m.*
Eastside at Flowery Branch, 6 p.m.*
Fellowship Christian at Banks County, 6 p.m.*
Jackson County at North Forsyth, 6 p.m.*
Jefferson at Loganville, 6 p.m.*
Johnson at Walnut Grove, 6 p.m.*
Mountain View at Buford, 6 p.m.*
North Oconee at Cherokee Bluff, 6 p.m.*
Seckinger at Chestatee, 6 p.m.*
Tallulah Falls at Lanier Christian, 7 p.m.
West Hall at Wesleyan, 6:30 p.m.*
(* -- denotes region contest)
