There’s no good time to be on a cold streak. But there are definitely certain times when teams want to be riding a hot streak.
Coming out of the Christmas tournament season is one of them for sure, and seven northeast Georgia teams exited December on fire as region play also heats up around the state and area.
On the boys' side, Habersham Central came into Wednesday’s Region 8-6A opener with No. 2 Shiloh on an 11-game win streak. Cherokee Bluff, ranked 10th in Class 4A, pushed its win streak to 9 straight, including its first-ever Lanierland title, while Union County, ranked 8th in Class 2A, has won 8 straight, including a Battle of the States crown.
On the girls' side, North Forsyth is ranked third in Class 6A and sports a perfect 14-0 record, while Lakeview Academy is also unbeaten at 11-0 and snagged its first-ever Lanierland title last week as well. Buford, ranked 4th in Class 7A, has won 11 straight, and Rabun County has climbed to 4th in Class A Division 1 and reeled off five straight wins, including a Battle of the States title.
It may be the best start for the North Forsyth girls during their run of six straight region titles. They’re ranked No. 1 in Class 6A in several polls, lead 6A in wins, and are one of just two unbeatens still left in the classification.
NoFo coach Brad Kudlas said the ranking comes with good and bad aspects.
“It is a great honor to be recognized as No. 1, but if we start patting ourselves on the back for a ranking now, then we are losing sight of our bigger goals,” he said. “Our focus is on daily improvement and the next game.”
London Weaver, Gabbie Gliatta, Emma Rose, and Lindsey Pirkle have led a group that has averaged 59.2 ppg on offense. They have allowed a Region 8-6A-best 39.3 ppg on the season and are the preseason favorite to repeat again.
“London has been consistently scoring for us, and she’s often joined by Gabbie,” Kudlas said. “As our point guard, Emma does so many things during a game that don’t show up in the stat sheet. Lindsey has improved in the post throughout the year. To me, the two most important things going into region play are to continue improving and then staying healthy.”
Despite dropping a 77-59 decision to No. 2 Shiloh on Wednesday in both teams’ Region 8-6A openers, Habersham Central boys coach Tommy Yancey said his team is more than capable of challenging for a playoff spot.
Until Wednesday, the Raiders (11-3, 0-1 Region 8-6A) had only given up 55 or more points twice all season.
“It is a very tough region,” Yancey said. “But we’ve been really good defensively and very balanced on offense so far. We have six guys averaging between 6 and 14 points/game.”
Enzo Combs has been leading the way at 13.8 ppg, and pulling down 4 rebounds and swiping 3.1 steals/game. Josiah McCurry has been a load inside, averaging 12.9 ppg and 8.3 rpg, while Brannon Gaines leads the team in assists with 5.1/game to go with 9.8 ppg and 5.3 rpg.
But Yancey knows they will need to stay consistent.
“We will need to be great defensively and continue to improve offensively to earn (a) top seed. We can’t have too many peaks and valleys as well.”
For the Lakeview girls, it has been an unprecedented start for the small Gainesville private school. First-year coach Ken Huffman, who was an assistant for the Lady Lions last season, said chemistry has been a huge part of their success. He hopes winning Lanierland will have a similar effect.
The Lady Lions lead GIAA Class 3A in wins (11) and scoring (662, 60.1 ppg) and will get ready to open region play against Bethlehem Christian next week.
Lakeview has a talented and versatile roster with guards Dynesty Putman, Emyrie Combs, and Taylor Clark providing quickness and outside shooting, with Taliah Gaither, Ashlyn Henderson, and Kivana Bogne giving them a solid inside presence.
“The cohesion among our players has been a standout factor,” Huffman said. “Building strong team chemistry, both on and off the court, has fostered a positive and supportive environment, enhancing our overall synergy and communication during games.
“(Winning) Lanierland has given our team a significant confidence boost. It provided us with the opportunity to test and refine our strategies against quality opponents. I think the positive momentum and belief in our abilities will undoubtedly carry over into region play.”
The preseason expectation for the Cherokee Bluff boys was that they would compete for a playoff spot in a brutally tough Region 8-4A. So far, they are more than showing that the early hype was justified, especially coming off their Lanierland title.
For the Bears (11-4, 3-1 Region 8-4A North), and like the others, defense has been at the forefront of their early success.
“Defensively, we have been pretty consistent this year,” Bluff coach Josh Travis said. “Shooting is something that is always up and down for any team or player. We have had some great shooting nights as well as some nights where we’ve struggled. But our defense has kept us in all of those games.”
Bluff is balanced and deep and has seven or eight players that can rotate in and out of the lineup at any time. Juniors Boston Kersh, who won the Lanierland MVP trophy, and Tyler Underwood, along with seniors Logan Holmes and Bryce Horton, have been mainstays. But younger players like sophomore Cooper Glover and Andy Quirarte provide them with plenty of options on both ends of the floor.
“We have a very strong core group of players in the rotation,” Travis said. “We’ve had more than our fair share of foul trouble, sickness, and injury to deal with. But during all of that adversity, we have had players step up and perform. And it’s been a lot of different guys that have stepped up.”
They will get their biggest test of the season on Friday when they play host to No. 2-ranked North Oconee (12-4, 2-1 Region 8-4A South). The South subregion is a perfect 9-0 vs. the North coming into Friday’s crossover games.
The Buford girls (11-1) once again are off to a quick start since a season-opening loss to Sequoyah. And they’ve done it against a challenging schedule with seven ranked teams to this point, getting six wins.
The Lady Wolves open Region 8-7A play on Friday vs. Mountain View at the Buford Arena.
Longtime Buford coach Gene Durden attributed their solid start to a veteran presence on and off the court. Not to mention their patented smothering, pressure defense, which is yielding just 44.25 points/game.
Seniors Ava Grace Watson, Alyssa Green, and Betty Nguyen, along with junior Izzy Rettiger, have helped pave the way for future stars like sophomore Lydia Ledford
“Our start to this season is due to the veteran players contributing to our style of play. We have been led by a core senior group, and many underclassmen have contributed in their roles,” Durden said. “Our pressure defense has led to many transition opportunities for the offense this season. We will continue to do what we have done so well in the past -- play aggressive defense along with good offense and sharing the ball.”
The Union County boys (13-2, 1-0 Region 8-2A) have improved by five wins from this time last season and opened their region slate with a tough road win over Providence Christian on Tuesday and are a perfect 5-0 on the road this season.
Coach Corey Garrett said their versatility has really picked up this season.
“One of the biggest factors has been our ability to learn and grow through the early part of the season,” he said. “Offensively, ball movement and playing to our individual strengths and roles has been the key. We have guys that can stress defenses in a lot of different ways, so trusting the system and keeping the ball moving makes us very hard to guard.
“Defensively, we are flying around. We have been able to get a lot of deflections and turn some teams over, and I feel like we have rebounded the ball well for not being an overly big team.”
They are getting quality minutes and play from juniors Jude Ellis, Houston Henry, and Hayden Hughes, who combined accounted for 53 of their 64 points against the Storm.
The win over Providence, last year’s region champion and state runner-up in Class 2A, may have put the rest of the region on notice.
“We play in a very competitive region,” Garrett said. “If we can keep our mold offensively and keep working our tails off on the defensive end, I think we will be right where we need to be at the end.”
The Rabun County girls (11-4) have reeled off five straight wins after a slow start despite an experienced roster. But with 12 freshmen or sophomores on the roster, seniors Ellie Southards, Lucy Hood, and Mili Watts have played big roles for the Lady Wildcats as they searched for the right combinations.
Chemistry was a huge priority for longtime coach DeeDee Dillard in the first half of the season. And a recent run to the Battle of the States title may be just what they needed as they get ready for a challenging Region 8-A Division 1 schedule.
“One of the biggest factors for us this year has been the leadership from our four seniors, both on and off the floor. They are doing a tremendous job of encouraging our younger players, helping them grow and develop to be able to perform at the varsity level,” Dillard said. “Anytime you can win a championship or tournament, it helps build confidence. The BOTS did that for us. Just competing with and winning some games against talented teams outside of our area was good for us.”
The Lady Wildcats open their region schedule next week on the road against Commerce, and Dillard said improving in all phases will be key.
“In order to compete for a region title, we will need to continue to work on and improve our offensive execution, defensive rotations, and rebounding,” she said. “Right now, we are just focusing on those "little" things that add up to bigger things.”
http://accesswdun.com/article/2024/1/1221460/basketball-area-teams-put-hot-starts-on-the-line-as-region-play-opens