Several regions across Northeast Georgia begin region tournament play this weekend.
Regions 8-7A, 8-5A, 8-4A and 8-2A are all set to begin on Friday and Saturday with play-in games. Only area teams in Region 8-4A and 8-2A play this weekend.
The largest region tournament, and the most intriguing bracket, is Region 8-4A. With 11 teams, Region 8-4A split into two sub-regions during the regular season, with only sub-region games counting in the win-loss column.
It's made the bracket very interesting and will be played at seven different schools in the first and second rounds. Those locations were determined by seeding.
The boys bracket will be the first one into action on Friday.
North Oconee is the No. 1 seed out of the south, and Cherokee Bluff is the top seed in the north. Both teams get a bye in the opening round and will host the quarterfinals.
In the opening round for teams in our coverage area, East Hall travels to North Hall to play East Forsyth for a trip to the quarterfinals. East Forsyth is 2-0 against the Vikings this season. They'll tip off at 6 p.m., followed by Johnson taking on North Hall. The Trojans won both regular-season meetings big.
The winner of the East Forsyth/East Hall game will get No. 1 seed North Oconee in Bogart, Ga. on Monday. The North Hall/Johnson winner gets No. 2 seed Madison County at Cherokee Bluff.
The girls bracket should be a dogfight fight each night. During the regular season, the North and South subregions traded blows in some close contests.
Eric Herrick, whose North Hall girls captured the top seed out of the North sub-region, said it's a very competitive field.
"If you look at the region as a whole, everyone has beaten everyone," he said. "I really think it’s going to be the team that gets hot at the right time. It's going to take a team playing great for three games in a row to win it. You’re going to have to beat three good teams."
North Hall gets a first-round bye and will host the quarterfinals next week.
In action on Saturday, Cherokee Bluff will play East Hall at East Forsyth for a trip to the quarterfinals against No. 1 seed Walnut Grove. Tip-off is 6 p.m. Bluff swept the regular season meetings.
Meanwhile, East Forsyth plays host to Johnson in the nightcap at 7:30 p.m. The Lady Broncos routed Johnson during the two regular-season meetings.
The quarterfinals for the Region 8-4A girls begin on Tuesday at North Hall.
North No. 1 seed North Hall gets a bye to the quarterfinals as does South top seed Walnut Grove.
The Region 8-4A semifinals and finals will be played on Feb. 16 and 17 at Chestatee High School.
In Region 8-2A, the East Jackson girls will play host to Fellowship Christian at 6 p.m. on Friday, while the East Jackson boys battle Athens Academy on Saturday at Banks County, and Banks County plays Fellowship Christian. Action begins at 6 p.m.
