Region 8-6A Tournament: Gainesville, Habersham boys battle for state playoff spot

When the Gainesville and Habersham Central boys meet for the third time this season on Tuesday, it'll be like a homecoming. 

Well, not really, but the two programs do know each other well. As for the homecoming, not so much. 

Gainesville (14-10 Region 8-6A No. 4 seed) will travel to Habersham Central (15-9 Region 8-6A No. 5 seed) on Tuesday in the first round of the Region 8-6A tournament. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. and can be heard live on AM 1240 and 94.5 FM The Lake. 

The two Region 8-6A foes split the two regular-season meetings; oddly enough, each won on the road. Does that play in Gainesville's favor? 

Gainesville coach Chuck Graham hopes his team can lean on the Mt. Airy, Ga. success they've had in the past but understands the Raiders are much improved since that early season game. 

"First off, to go win a region road game takes a level of toughness," Graham said. "I think this is going to be like a Game 7. We've had success there in the past and earlier this year. I hope we can lean on some of that just going through that experience, but still understanding they are a lot better team now than they were then. "

Habersham Central coach Tommy Yancey has focused on slowing down Gainesville's perimeter shooter. 

"We've got to do the best we can to stop their shooters," he said. "They've got a lot of shooters. If they're making shots, it's going to be a long game for us. So, we've got to focus on defense."

In the first meeting last month at Habersham, Gainesville hit 11 3-pointers and was successful inside the paint en route to an 82-69 win. Habersham Central avenged the first loss with a solid defensive performance en route to a 57-50 win in Gainesville. 

Both coaches believe the game in the paint and a stingy defensive effort will be vital to success. 

"That's our biggest focus, trying to make sure we defend and rebound," Yancey said. "That will probably have to do with who's going to win."

"It's going to come down to rebounding, making them move on defense, and making shots," Graham said. "The first time we played Hab, we won the rebounding by like eight rebounds, and they outrebounded us at home. So, I think this one will be won in the paint, not so much scoring, but if we can hold them to one shot and make shots on our end."