FLOWERY BRANCH — On one hand, it’s a run-of-the-mill early-season region game. On the other, it’s perhaps the biggest game of the night in the entire state in girls basketball.
Friday’s showdown at the Flowery Branch gym pits Class AAAAA No. 1 Flowery Branch against No. 2 Buford for an early claim to the top spot in Region 8-AAAAA. Tip-off is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start.
And somewhere in between “no big deal” and “biggest game of the season” sit both Flowery Branch coach Courtney Newton-Gonzalez and Buford coach Gene Durden.
“We know it’s a big game for the fans and the communities. But for us in the program, it’s really just the next game,” Durden said. “Win or lose, it’s just one game early in the season. There’s a long way to go before we get to the end, and injuries, all kinds of things really, can change so we try not to put too much on it this early.”
“We know for our community it’s a big game. You can’t hide that,” Newton-Gonzalez said. “But, it won’t be a determining game for either team, no matter what happens. But, we also haven’t been a part of a 1 vs. 2 in a while so it’s exciting for us for sure.”
All downplay aside by the coaches, it figures to be a tremendous -- and even -- matchup between two teams with high expectations, not just in the region but also state reckoning.
Flowery Branch (9-1, 3-0 Region 8-AAAAA) is averaging 59.2 points a game on offense and yielding 41.1 ppg on defense. Its nine wins is tied for most in AAAAA. Buford (5-0, 2-0) is scoring 68.4 ppg, which is third in AAAAA, while allowing just 37 ppg.
Both teams have solid guard play. The Lady Falcons feature junior Lexi Sengkhammee, senior Queen Scott, and sophomore Caroline Wysocki, who all can drive the ball and shoot from outside.
“As a group they are playing real well together,” Newton-Gonzalez said. “Lexi is really getting comfortable in the offense and she makes things go for us. She’s playing very well right now.”
Buford counters with senior Rachel Dobbs, juniors Tory Ozment and Audrey Weiner, and freshman Tate Walters, who Durden said may be the best shooting combination he has had in his time at Buford.
“All of them can really shoot. We’ve had some great shooters in the past but not this many on one team,” Durden said.
On the inside, the Lady Falcons have junior Taniyah Worth and senior Julianne Sutton, who both can score from anywhere on the court and can rebound and block shots.
Buford has 6-foot-3 junior post Jessica Nelson and senior Zikaya Wright, each of whom can dominate inside as well, giving the Lady Wolves a potent inside-outside game.
The depth of the Lady Wolves could be key, as Flowery Branch has rotated about eight players regularly.
“This is probably one of our more balanced teams,” Durden said. “We can go 12 deep if we need too and not have much drop-off on the floor. But, we’re still working on our rotations and finding the right chemistry. We’ve played well at times but we’re still progressing.”
In common opponents, both have wins over Loganville, an expected playoff team, in Region 8-AAAAA play (56-44 for Buford, 45-36 for Flowery Branch) and against Class AAAA No. 7 Jefferson (63-44 for Buford, 61-40 for Flowery Branch).
Among the state’s elite, the Lady Falcons have beaten Class AAAAAA No. 3 Winder-Barrow twice already this season. The Lady Wolves handed Class AAAA No. 1 North Oconee its only loss of the season, 54-36, in their season-opener.
Both Durden and Newton-Gonzalez admitted the importance of Friday’s showdown, the first of two meetings in the regular season (they will also tangle in Buford on Jan. 24) to grab the early lead in 8-AAAAA. But they also admit it’s more than just that.
“We always try to schedule the best teams in the state to help us grow and evolve as a team and to challenge us as well,” Durden said. “This will be a big challenge for us, but that’s what we like. We’ll play again so whatever happens (on Friday) could be different the second time. It’s really about trying to grow and progress right now.”
The Lady Falcons are also excited to see how they stack up.
“This will be a good measure to evaluate ourselves,” Newton-Gonzalez said. “The girls I think will be hyped-up for this one. I think it will be great experience for us this early in what should be a playoff-atmosphere. But, once the game tips off, it’s just another game really.”
http://accesswdun.com/article/2016/12/481328/buford-girls-head-to-branch-in-battle-of-1-vs-2-in-8-aaaaa-showdown