Jeff Hart

Kevin Garnett had 27 points and 19 rebounds, Paul Pierce scored 23 and the Boston Celtics beat the Atlanta Hawks 106-83 Friday night, their third blowout win of a season in which they're off to their best start in 20 years.

North Hall put the finishing touches on just its second-ever undefeated regular season with an eye-opening 53-6 win over Chestatee Friday at War Eagle Stadium. The Class AAA third-ranked Trojans will carry the No. 1 seed from Region 7-AAA into the playoffs.

Ashley Houts scored 17 points and No. 9 Georgia used a big run starting the second half to win its season opener, 81-53 over Richmond on Friday night. Gainesville native Tasha Humphrey, a third-team All-America each of the last two years, had 13 points and nine rebounds for Georgia.

UNC-Greensboro handed another major-conference school a stunning loss, getting 25 points from Kyle Hines in an 83-74 victory over Georgia Tech on Friday night.

About this time a year ago, Matthew Stafford was a mess of a freshman quarterback. He wasn't always sure where to throw the ball. He was winging it with the play-calling. And his passes kept going to the wrong team. Then suddenly it all clicked.

At the end of last season, the Gainesville boys basketball team ran into one of those teams no one wanted to play at the end of the season falling to Villa Rica in the opening round of the Class AAA playoffs. This year coach Jerry Davis is hoping to be on the other side of the upset.

A solid start to the 2006-07 season for the West Hall boys basketball team was cut down just as the Spartans were ready to take off. Two players were lost to grades and another suffered a season-ending knee injury three seconds into his first game as the starting point guard. So entering the current season with just one returning starter does not scare coach Warren Sellers.

After enduring a rough 3-21 campaign last season, the West Hall girls basketball team can only go up as it prepares for the 2007-08 season. And coach Lynn Jarrett believes her young squad should be up for the challenge.

Record-wise 13-17 wasn

Despite losing his three top players from last year