While positioning for upcoming region tournaments on the boy's side seems fast and furious, it’s even more intense for the girls in northeast Georgia.
Eleven teams entered the week ranked among the eight GHSA classifications. Some of the region races may be ready to take shape. But most may go down to the final week of the season.
And Friday and Saturday will offer area fans plenty of crucial showdowns.
In Region 8-7A, No. 4 Buford (13-1, 2-0 Region 8-7A) is tied with No. 9 Dacula (12-3, 2-0 Region 8-7A) atop the standings with No. 8 Mill Creek (10-4, 1-1 Region 8-7A) and Central Gwinnett (14-3, 1-1 Region 8-7A) just a game back.
All four of those teams will be in action against each other on Friday. Buford heads to Central Gwinnett while Dacula plays host to Mill Creek, so there could be even more separation and a traffic jam at the top by the end of the night.
In Region 8-6A, No. 3 North Forsyth (16-0, 3-0 Region 8-6A) is beginning to take control. The Lady Raiders lead Apalachee (8-8, 2-1 Region 8-6A) by one game with Gainesville (3-9, 1-1 Region 8-6A), Habersham Central (4-9, 1-1 Region 8-6A) and Lanier (5-9, 1-1 Region 8-6A) all tied for third.
Like 8-7A, the top teams are all in action against each other over the weekend, with plenty of movement expected.
Habersham plays host to Apalachee while the Lady Red Elephants are at home against North Forsyth on Friday. On Saturday, Habersham heads to North Forsyth, while Gainesville will play host to Lanier. Jackson County (3-12, 0-3 Region 8-6A) travels to Shiloh (4-11, 1-2 Region 8-6A) on Saturday.
In Region 8-5A, sixth-ranked Jefferson (15-3, 5-0 Region 8-5A) leads second place Eastside (11-5, 5-1 Region 8-5A) by one-half game with Loganville Eastside (12-5, 3-2 Region 8-5A) and Clarke Central (6-7, 3-2 Region 8-5A) tied for third. Heritage-Conyers (7-8, 1-4 Region 8-5A) is a distant fourth, and Winder-Barrow (6-9, 0-4 Region 8-5A) and Flowery Branch (3-14, 0-4 Region 8-5A) tied for last at the moment.
The Lady Dragons head to Clarke Central on Friday, while Eastside is off from region play until next week. Flowery Branch will now host Heritage on Saturday, and Winder will travel to Loganville.
The interesting stat for Region 8-4A, which is split into subregions, is that the North teams have dominated the South, going 8-4 as a group. The top four teams in the North are 8-0 vs. the South. The next crossover day will be Tuesday.
On Friday, there are several big showdowns. Chestatee (13-4, 5-0 Region 8-4A North) leads Cherokee Bluff (13-3, 4-1 Region 8-4A North) by a game after Tuesday’s win over the Lady Bears. North Hall (10-5, 3-2 Region 8-4A North) is third, and East Forsyth (8-7, 3-3 Region 8-4A North) is fourth.
North Hall heads to rival East Hall (4-12, 0-5 Region 8-4A North), but the biggest matchup will have the Lady Bears traveling to East Forsyth. Chestatee takes on Johnson (3-12, 0-4 Region 8-4A North) on the road.
On the South side, North Oconee (11-6, 4-0 Region 8-4A South) leads Walnut Grove (7-5, 3-1 Region 8-4A South) by a game, and the two teams will meet on Friday in Walnut Grove. Madison County (9-8, 2-2 Region 8-4A South) sits third, Cedar Shoals (5-10, 1-2 Region 8-4A South) is fourth, and Seckinger (4-8, 0-4 Region 8-4A South) is at the bottom for now.
In Region 7-3A, No. 2 Wesleyan (12-1, 4-0 Region 7-3A) and No. 3 Pickens (17-0, 4-0 Region 7-3A) are tied for first, and they will meet on Friday in Jasper. No. 6 Dawson County (10-6, 3-1 Region 7-3A) is a game back of both but has a huge showdown with No. 5 White County (14-3, 2-2 Region 7-3A) in Cleveland on Friday.
Gilmer (6-8, 1-4 Region 7-3A) and Lumpkin County (5-11, 1-4 Region 7-3A) are tied for fifth.
In Region 8-2A, sixth-ranked Banks County (12-4, 2-0 Region 8-2A) has begun to get hot, winning five straight. The Lady Leopards are tied for first with Union County (9-7, 2-0 Region 8-2A). Their Tuesday matchup was postponed until Jan. 23, but both will be in action on Friday.
The Lady Leopards travel to Athens Academy (9-7, 1-1 Region 8-2A), while the Lady Panthers are on the road at East Jackson (5-7, 0-2 Region 8-2A).
Region 8-A Division 2 could see a lot of movement over the weekend as several teams play on both Friday and Saturday in key region matchups..
Seventh-ranked Towns County (10-4, 3-0 Region 8-A Division 2) travels to Lake Oconee (7-7, 1-2 Region 8-A Division 2) on Friday and then plays host to Washington-Wilkes (6-6, 1-2 Region 8-A Division 2) on Saturday. (The Towns County game at Lake Oconee has moved to Jan. 23 due to weather concerns.)
The Lady Indians lead Warren County (11-3, 3-1 Region 8-A Division 2) and Greene County (5-9, 3-1 Region 8-A Division 2) by one-half game. Lake Oconee, Washington-Wilkes, and Aquinas (8-6, 1-2 Region 8-A Division 2) all are tied for fourth.
Washington-Wilkes heads to Warren County on Friday before trekking up to Hiawassee on Saturday.
Region 8-A Division 1 opened region play on Wednesday with No. 4 Rabun County (13-4, 1-0 Region 8-A Division 1) knocking off Commerce (10-7, 0-1 Region 8-A Division 1). Neither team plays in the region again until Tuesday.
(See the entire schedules for Friday and Saturday below.)
HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL SCHEDULE FOR Friday, Jan. 12
Apalachee at Habersham Central, 6 p.m.*
Banks County at Athens Academy, 7 p.m.*
Bethlehem Christian at Lakeview Academy, 6 p.m.*
Buford at Central Gwinnett, 6 p.m.*
Cherokee Bluff at East Forsyth, 6 p.m.*
Chestatee at Johnson, 6 p.m.*
Dawson County at White County, 7 p.m.*
East Hall at North Hall, 6 p.m.*
Flowery Branch at Heritage-Conyers, 5:30 p.m.*
Jefferson at Clarke Central, 7 p.m.*
Lanier Christian Academy at Fideles Christian, 6:30 p.m.*
North Forsyth at Gainesville, 7 p.m.* -- RADIO: 94.5 FM The Lake
Prince Avenue Christian at Rabun County, 6:30 p.m.
Tallulah Falls at Commerce, 7 p.m.*
Towns County at Lake Oconee, 7 p.m..* -- (moved to Jan. 23)
Union County at East Jackson, 6 p.m.*
West Hall at Gilmer, 7 p.m.*
HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL SCHEDULE FOR Saturday, Jan. 13
Fannin County at Union County, 3 p.m.
Habersham Central at North Forsyth, 3 p.m.*
Heritage-Conyers at Flowery Branch, 1:30 p.m.* (boys game first)
Jackson County at Shiloh, 4 p.m.*
Lanier at Gainesville, 4 p.m.* – RADIO: 94.5 FM The Lake
Lanier Christian at Providence Christian, 4:15 p.m.
Lumpkin County at Murray County, 1:30 p.m.
River Ridge at Buford, 6 p.m.
Washington-Wilkes at Towns County, 5 p.m.*
(* -- denotes region contest)
