Westlake replaces Milton atop AAAAA boys rankings
There are four new No. 1-ranked teams this week in what represents the biggest shakeup at the top this season.
New at the top are Westlake (AAAAA boys), Wilkinson County (A boys), Rome (AAAA girls) and Vidalia (AA girls).
Class AAAAA boys is really getting fun. There’s no right way to separate the top five teams. No. 5 could easily be No. 1. In fact, when the GaSports and AP polls come out, I wouldn’t be surprise if our No. 5 is their No. 1.
Here are some of the pros and cons of each …
No. 1 – Westlake (21-2). The Lions would be a slam dunk for No. 1 if they hadn’t lost to Morrow last month. But it was a controversial one-point loss that will have no effect in Westlake’s Region 4-AAAAA standing. Westlake beat Morrow by 40 points the other time they played, so that mitigates things a bit. Meanwhile, Westlake has beaten Centennial, our No. 2 team, and Rice of New York, a team ranked in the top 50 of at least two national rankings. Westlake’s other loss is 60-54 to Ridgeway of Tennessee, a team ranked in the top 10 of MaxPreps and USA Today. Despite that national exposure, Westlake has not played the week-in, week-out tough schedule of the other contenders in our top five. That and the Morrow loss are the weak links in the Westlake argument.
No. 2 – Centennial (16-7). Looking at the full body of work, Centennial is a dubious No. 2. There are seven losses, four to out-of-state teams (and not all of those teams were that outstanding). The Knights also lost to No. 1 Westlake, Class AA No. 1 GAC and No. 3 Milton. But Milton is 3-1 vs. the five teams in this debate and stand alone at the top in 6-AAAAA, the state’s toughest region, the one that produced the champion and runner-up in 2009.
No. 3 – Milton (19-4). No Georgia team has beaten more good teams than Milton, which has victories over No. 2 Centennial, No. 5 Norcross, No. 7 McEachern, Westminster of California (No. 21 in USA Today) and a couple of top-200 national programs in Christ the King (N.Y.) and St. Frances (Md.) Keeping the Eagles at No. 1 is tempting, but it’s just bad time given the 22-point loss to Centennial and a likely second-place finish in the subregion. Are we looking at Milton vs. Walton for a berth to state in a couple of weeks? Wow.
No. 4 – Wheeler (18-4). Here’s a defending champ with a victory over Milton on a winning streak.
No. 5 – Norcross (20-2). The other two polls might have Norcross at No. 1. I don’t have to make that argument for the Blue Devils. I’m sure some Devils fans will do that for me. Norcross has a couple of wins over top-200 national-type teams. One of them, Scott County, beat Wheeler. But Wheeler also beat Milton, which beat Norcross. All five of these teams deserve to be ranked higher than No. 5.
BOYS
Class AAAAA
1. Westlake (21-2)
2. Centennial (16-7)
3. Milton (19-4)
4. Wheeler (18-4)
5. Norcross (20-2)
6. Meadowcreek (20-3)
7. McEachern (19-4)
8. Central Gwinnett (21-2)
9. Groves (21-1)
10. Newton (22-1)
Class AAAA
1. Rockdale County (23-1)
2. Miller Grove (18-6)
3. Richmond Academy (21-1)
4. Fayette County (19-4)
5. Chamblee (17-6)
6. Bainbridge (20-4)
7. North Clayton (22-2)
8. Glynn Academy (19-3)
9. Hillgrove (19-4)
10. Lithia Springs (19-4)
Class AAA
1. Columbia (17-5)
2. LaGrange (23-0)
3. Monroe (20-1)
4. Elbert County (21-2)
5. South Atlanta (21-2)
6. Liberty County (23-1)
7. Dunwoody (17-4)
8. Westover (20-3)
9. Washington County (19-4)
10. Hart County (19-4)
Class AA
1. Greater Atlanta Christian (22-1)
2. Northeast-Macon (21-1)
3. Laney (23-2)
4. Decatur (18-3)
5. Blessed Trinity (16-7)
6. Dade County (21-2)
7. Thomasville (20-3)
8. Dublin (17-5)
9. Jefferson (17-6)
10. McIntosh County Academy (17-6)
Class A
1. Wilkinson County (24-0)
2. Whitefield Academy (18-3)
3. Wesleyan (18-4)
4. Wilcox County (19-2)
5. Lanier County (20-3)
6. Terrell County (18-5)
7. Claxton (21-2)
8. Greenville (17-5)
9. Gordon Lee (17-5)
10. Paideia (17-6)
GIRLS
Class AAAAA
1. Redan (22-0)
2. Parkview (23-0)
3. Norcross (19-3)
4. Mill Creek (19-4)
5. Westlake (16-3)
6. Bradwell Institute (22-1)
7. North Cobb (20-3)
8. McEachern (19-4)
9. Campbell (17-5)
10. Stephenson (17-5)
Class AAAA
1. Rome (24-0)
2. Southwest DeKalb (18-4)
3. Northwest Whitfield (21-2)
4. Mays (16-4)
5. Fayette County (20-4)
6. Bainbridge (21-2)
7. Statesboro (20-2)
8. Forest Park (20-3)
9. Douglas County (19-4)
10. Clarke Central (16-4)
Class AAA
1. Kendrick (23-0)
2. Columbia (16-3)
3. Carver-Atlanta (18-4)
4. Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe (18-5)
5. Washington County (20-2)
6. Westover (20-3)
7. Chestatee (18-4)
8. East Hall (17-5)
9. Pickens (19-5)
10. Jackson-Atlanta (16-6)
Class AA
1. Vidalia (23-0)
2. Greater Atlanta Christian (18-4)
3. Buford (20-2)
4. Northeast-Macon (20-2)
5. Laney (21-2)
6. Fannin County (17-3)
7. Dodge County (20-3)
8. Thomasville (20-3)
9. North Oconee (19-3)
10. Rabun County (19-1)
Class A
1. Wesleyan (19-4)
2. Randolph-Clay (21-3)
3. Calvary Day (22-1)
4. Taylor County (22-1)
5. Paideia (21-2)
6. Gordon Lee (21-1)
7. Southwest Atlanta Christian (14-5)
8. Emanuel County Institute (18-0)
9. Warren County (20-4)
10. Holy Innocents’ (21-3)
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123 comments Add your comment
Nolesfan
February 7th, 2010
7:38 pm
Girl’s AAAA—-#10 will beat #1! Believe it.
MaryKate
February 7th, 2010
8:13 pm
Stop ranking McEachern. Groves hasn’t played a team worth mentioning besides their only loss. Newton Co. hasn’t played anyone all season either. Westlake is the best team in GA.
Devil Lover
February 7th, 2010
8:15 pm
TODD, I AM DISAPPOINTED AGAIN THIS WEEK WITH YOUR RANKING. NO TEAM IS PLAYING BETTER THAN NORCROSS IN 5A. 20-2 RECORD WITH A 17 GAME WINNING STREAK AND THEY HAVE BEATEN THEIR LAST THREE OPPONENTS BY AN AVG OF 35 PTS.
BY THE WAY, SCOTT COUNTY, KY WHO BEAT WHEELER BUT NORCROSS BEAT THEM BY ELEVEN PTS ON THE ROAD, WHO YOU SAID WAS A TOP 200 TYPE NATIONAL TEAM WAS ACTUALLY RANKED 107 WHEN NORCROSS BEAT THEM.
SO, I GUESS I SHOULD JUST GIVE UP BECAUSE NORCROSS IS NOT IN EITHER COBB OR NORTH FULTON BUT DOES PLAY GOOD BASKETBALL. HOWEVER I HAVE TO BE HONEST, TO ME THIS IS DEZA-VU ALL OVER AGAIN LIKE IN 2006, 2007 AND 2008. NOBODY THOUGHT THEN EITHER.
Lumpy
February 7th, 2010
8:16 pm
NW whitfield is best 4a girls team. No doubt. They play tome
tuesday. Next week we will be ranked number one wait and see!!
Devil Lover
February 7th, 2010
8:35 pm
todd you meantioned that the other two polls might rank norcross no 1. other than gasports, which other poll were you speaking of?
Todd Holcomb
February 7th, 2010
8:55 pm
Devil Lover: I think the AP (Georgia Sports Writers Association) is still doing its poll, which usually appears closer to Thursday. It’s not always easy to find. … The point you make about Norcross playing the best basketball at the moment is a good one because the other team playing that well is Wheeler, yet they’re #4-5. In rankings, it’s tough to decide how to weigh earlier games against the more recent ones. How much should we consider Westlake vs. Centennial or Norcross vs. Milton when those games took place in December (or some time like that)?
Todd Holcomb
February 7th, 2010
8:55 pm
By the way, Chip and I added the W-L records this week at the request of a poster last week or the week before. We assume there are a few errors, as it’s tough keeping track of every game played. Lot hard than football, fwiw.
gemini103
February 7th, 2010
9:30 pm
In AAA boys, How do you have Lagrange which is 23-0 behind Columbia thats 17-5. Anyone else thinks this is odd.
Dylan
February 7th, 2010
10:10 pm
#3 Northwest Whitfield vs #1 Rome on Tuesday night in Tunnel Hill. Going to be one heck of a game. Gym should be packed with fans from all over the region. Who do you have in this game, Todd?
Albert Forthe
February 7th, 2010
10:31 pm
Why doesn’t either Valdosta or Tift County (or both) get a nod in the AAAAA rankings? Are all of the North Georgia AAAAA so good that no South Georgia team deserves any consideration? Just askin’.
Bob
February 7th, 2010
10:45 pm
Centennial is actually 17-6. The TC Williams loss ended up being a forfeit due to TC Williams using ineligible 5th year players. I think the top 5 in AAAAA is interesting. Norcross and Westlake do not have the brutal region schedule like Milton, Wheeler and Centennial but they are still very good and deserving of top 5 rankings. It should be an interesting AAAAA state playoffs.
WheelerFan
February 7th, 2010
10:59 pm
devil lover why do you always cry about rankings? this isnt the BCS in college football, teams actually have to go out and win tournament games to win a state title, so I never understand why every year on this blog you whine and moan about where norcross is ranked…who cares where your teams ranked in february, it means nothing…and all you seem to every want to do is compare the score of one team to another teams, who cares if norcross beat scott county who beat wheeler who beat milton etc etc etc….you must be 12 years old with your incessant whining and type of logic
Todd Holcomb
February 7th, 2010
11:19 pm
“Why doesn’t either Valdosta or Tift County (or both) get a nod in the AAAAA rankings? Are all of the North Georgia AAAAA so good that no South Georgia team deserves any consideration? Just askin’.”
Groves is ranked. That’s South Georgia. But as for 1-AAAAA, I certainly believe they deserve consideration, but those teams don’t have the recent playoff history or schedule strength to make them sure-fire Top 10 teams. Not saying they can’t prove people wrong in the playoffs, but until then, they won’t get much respect beyond low-end Top 10 at best.
“Centennial is actually 17-6. The TC Williams loss ended up being a forfeit due to TC Williams using ineligible 5th year players.”
I didn’t know that, Bob. Thanks.
“In AAA boys, How do you have Lagrange which is 23-0 behind Columbia thats 17-5. Anyone else thinks this is odd.”
Columbia also is unbeaten in Georgia. They’ve played a national schedule of teams that include Oak Hill of Virginia. I need to let the Columbia fans defend me on this one after they so effectively grilled me when I had South Atlanta at No. 1 ahead of Columbia a couple of weeks back.
Westlake replaces Milton atop AAAAA boys rankings | Prep Zone: AJC … | I Love High School Football
February 7th, 2010
11:55 pm
[...] More: Westlake replaces Milton atop AAAAA boys rankings | Prep Zone: AJC … [...]
W/E
February 8th, 2010
12:17 am
Walton wiped the floor with Meadowcreek earlier this year and having seen Campbell play multiple times and seen McEachern some I’d bet Campbell would beat McEachern by 15 or so. Yes Region 6 is that strong. The top 5 is to be organized anyway you feel because no one is absolutely dominating in-state. That region tourney matchup of Milton vs. the 3-seed of Wheeler/ Walton/ Campbell just for a state berth will be well worth the price of admission. Wheeler holds a 1-game lead on both Walton and Campbell, but still faces both this week so subregion 6 in Region 6AAAAA will go down to the wire this week.
The Colonel
February 8th, 2010
12:31 am
Centennial totally ambushed Milton Saturday night. They’ll be tough in the playoffs. Alan Whitehart has a great program going. The Dawgs need to form a relationship with him.
Todd Holcomb
February 8th, 2010
12:44 am
W/E: Good assessment. It’s not beyond reason that Region 6 has five of the best 8-9 teams in Class AAAAA. But I also think M’creek has improved more since December than Walton, perhaps partly due to Harrow getting his legs back under him. It’s hard to rate teams like McEachern and Newton and others outside the top five and outside 6-AAAAA due to schedule issues.
S. Thomas Coleman
February 8th, 2010
2:05 am
Hoop Fans,
Send any interesting facts, stats or anecdotes to me at sthomascoleman2010@yahoo.com, for possible publication (space permitting) in the “Etc. Notes” on the Friday High School page.
See you in the region and state playoffs! Once again, it should be a fun ride!
S. Thomas Coleman
Cobb Hoops
February 8th, 2010
2:22 am
W/E-I thought the top 4 teams in each region went to state? That’s the way GHSA has the bracket ranked. Centennial, Walton, Wheeler, and Milton all got to state last year. Has it changed this year?
WheelerFan
February 8th, 2010
2:53 am
no 4 teams should still go pretty sure, i think campbell is region 6 so thats 5 teams that are playoff teams with only 4 spots though
Tim Shaw
February 8th, 2010
6:35 am
I know GAC is AA, but you should go there this week (home Tuesday & Friday) and you might see the best boys team in GA and probably one of the best if not the best basketball gyms in all of GA
michael
February 8th, 2010
6:40 am
Thanks for showing the Jackson-Atlanta girls some love. If they stay healthy, they will make a deep playoff run this year.
nobody
February 8th, 2010
6:53 am
how long have the starting five for GAC played together?
NoLion
February 8th, 2010
7:09 am
None of this matters until march 10th.
Devil Lover
February 8th, 2010
7:47 am
Todd, since norcross lost its post player to injury and none of these players were in the starting rotation last year plus two players are transfers, I think using the second half results will be a much better perdictor of Norcross’ future capabilities than was december 09.
allcrimson
February 8th, 2010
7:50 am
Northside girls are overlooked in AAAA and just like we want it.
ac
Devil Lover
February 8th, 2010
7:51 am
HEY WHEELERFAN….I CARE.
GetCarter
February 8th, 2010
8:03 am
Norcross didn’t lose their post player “due to injury”.
jw
February 8th, 2010
8:49 am
How do you have Hillgrove ahead of Lithia Springs when they went to Hillgrove and beat them?
HSHoopsFan
February 8th, 2010
9:13 am
#1 team in Georgia… GAC. They beat Centennial and their only loss is to Melrose Memphis (a top 20 US team). 4 of the 5 starters played last year with the 1 addition being Malcom Brogdan who many believe is one of the top juniors in the state.
Decatur 4 Life
February 8th, 2010
9:13 am
gemini103
No it’s not that odd, Columbia plays a national schedule. If we only had GA opponents we’d be undefeated as well.
Wildcat00
February 8th, 2010
9:18 am
I have one thing to say about the Class A boys. The State better watch for Lanier County. They have a group of boys that have played together for many years and have gelled. They should be heavy contenders for the State Championship this year.
Decatur 4 Life
February 8th, 2010
9:20 am
And yes thanks Tood for letting me grill “gemini103″ on that one, you know we can break it down for him with no problem. Winning and being highly ranked in the state is nothing new to us, u better do your research.
jethomps
February 8th, 2010
9:20 am
The team with most wins and no loses is Trinity Christain School’s lady Cruaders from Dublin GA at 28-0. They are one of smallest schools in GISA’s AAA.
Eagle2
February 8th, 2010
9:20 am
“In AAA boys, How do you have Lagrange which is 23-0 behind Columbia thats 17-5. Anyone else thinks this is odd.”
Todd Holcomb don’t worry I got your back on this one
gemini103,
Columbia has played 11 teams that has been either nationally or regionally ranked and the 5 games they lost came to teams that at some point were ranked by numerous polls in the top ten in the country and they were all loses by no more than 5 pts with the exception of yates and whitney young. I’m not one for moral victories but they were in the game until the end in all of those losses. with that said and from looking at Lagrange’s schedule I’m not saying they are not good but I dont think they would have stood a chance with the schedule Columbia has played. So the record means nothing. Check the strength of schedule. outside of region play Columbia has arguably the toughest schedule in the state and thats why they are number one.
Eagle1 where you at?
Region 6
February 8th, 2010
9:32 am
Congratulations to Centennial on back to back very solid performances vs Milton. I saw both games and either team could’ve won that first meeting on Tuesday. That’s one of the best hs games I’ve seen this year between 2 great teams. The final margin of 7 was not at all indicitive of the game.
Saturday night at Milton it looked as though the Eagles were going to run Centennial out of the building after the first quarter leading 21-12. The Knights controlled everything from that point forward tying the game and the half and dominating the 2nd half.
Wheeler wins big in California and is on a roll. Campbell knocks off Walton and the 6A is now wide open for the taking depending on this week.
Are they really going to allow Campbell to host the best region tournament in the courntry so 1,000 people can see it? What are they thinking????????
Truth4Westlake
February 8th, 2010
9:38 am
Very interesting the top 5, even though im a true Westlake fan I know that the top 5 teams are only seperated by a small margin. Im interseted in the state playoffs and very interested to see how Milton bounces back now that no one is intimitated by them!!!
Truth4Westlake
February 8th, 2010
9:42 am
Columbia tread softly, that first lost South Atlanta took in three years really reenergized the whole spirit of the team. South Atlanta coming for those decatur boys!!!!!!
Todd Holcomb
February 8th, 2010
9:47 am
“I know GAC is AA, but you should go there this week (home Tuesday & Friday) and you might see the best boys team in GA and probably one of the best if not the best basketball gyms in all of GA.’’
Probably one of the best gyms in Georgia? I’d like to see one better! ..
Here’s a story I did on GAC last week:
http://www.ajc.com/sports/high-school/martin-picks-up-where-291350.html
“How do you have Hillgrove ahead of Lithia Springs when they went to Hillgrove and beat them?”
jw: That’s a good question. Head-to-head isn’t everything, and Lithia Springs has lost a couple of games to AAA opponents. But having said that, I think I should review that call because Lithia Springs has lost some close ones, and I probably punished them too much for losing to AAAAA South Cobb. I think I expected so much of Hillgrove this season that I might not be looking at their results objectively. (Yes, once or twice a year, I struggle with objectivity just like everybody else.) Good point.
“Saturday night at Milton it looked as though the Eagles were going to run Centennial out of the building after the first quarter leading 21-12.”
I didn’t realize Milton was up 9 in that game. Interesting. I wonder if it’s partly the fatigue of playing in that region and that schedule overall. It’s hard for Milton or Centennial or any of those schools to be at the top of their game every night. That’s why the region tournament will be interesting – especially the potential Milton-Walton game in the quarterfinals. Or what if it’s Campbell-Milton in the QF in Campbell’s gym? Good stuff.
Todd Holcomb
February 8th, 2010
9:48 am
Also, Seth Coleman writes a good notebook on Georgia high school football on Fridays. So help him out if you’ve got a good story that’s not getting any press.
Meanwhile, the AJC has stories coming this week on Redan’s girls for Wednesday, Rockdale County’s boys on Friday and Columbia’s boys/girls (both are major state contenders) for Saturday.
Eagle2
February 8th, 2010
9:49 am
Truth4Westlake….lol….unless they caught the hoy spirit when they got reenergized spiritually i dont think they would want you selling wolf tickets for them. Last year was definitely their year and they siezed the moment. Congrats to them but they dont stand a chance either…as for westlake…good job this season i hope history doesnt repeat itself and yall fizzle out as in years past…as a fan im sure you remember what happened when yall ran into us a couple of years ago when yall were undefeated and ranked #1.
justthefacts
February 8th, 2010
10:36 am
I agree that any one of those top five teams, in 5A, can stake a claim to the top spot. However, your analysis is a little flawed. Westlake recently lost to a weak Morrow team. Whether it was a controversial loss or not the number 1 team shouldn’t have put themselves in that situation.
Two weeks ago Centennial lost to a TC Williams team that lost to Thomas Jefferson the night before. Norcross beat Thomas Jefferson.
Milton probably has had the toughest schedule but is 1-3 in the last four games against quality teams.
Wheeler lost to a Scott County team that Norcross beat. Right now Wheeler is playing better then the teams in front of them
Norcross is 17-0 since losing to Milton by 4. They are 16-0 since Adrian Hubbard left the team. They are playing better without him because their remaing pieces fit together better.
Since the start of the holiday break;
Norcross is 16-0 and has a +25 point differential.
Wheeler is 11-2 with a +19 point differential.
Westlake is 14-2 with a +18 point differential.
Milton is 12-4 with a +13 point differential.
Centennial is 13-5 with a +3 point differential.
Right now that is how I would have them rated but there isn’t one of them I would rule out as the posssible state champion.
W/E
February 8th, 2010
11:08 am
Here’s how region 6 works cobb hoops:
Here’s how the region tournament works
Here’s how the region is split:
(6B) that has Milton, Centennial, Alpharetta, Kell, and Roswell. The other side (6A) is Campbell, Wheeler, Walton, Pope, and Lassiter.
The tournament shapes like this. For the sake of less confusion I’m numbering some of the games.
Play-in round
6A 5 seed vs. 6B 4 seed (Game 1)
6B 5 seed vs. 6A 4 seed (Game 2)
1st round
6A 1 seed vs winner of Game 1 (Game 3)
6A 2 seed vs 6B 3 seed (Game 4)
6B 1 seed vs winner of Game 2 (Game 5)
6B 2 seed vs. 6A 3 seed (Game 6)
Semis (teams in state tourney)
Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 6
Winner of Game 4 vs. Winner of Game 5
You can figure the seeding from there.
So the result would be the 3rd team of Wheeler/Walton/Campbell playing either Centennial or Milton in Fulton county in a game to knock one out of the state playoffs
THS
February 8th, 2010
12:00 pm
Way to go Thomasville! Ranked in the top ten for boys & girls basketball!
Truth4Westlake
February 8th, 2010
12:40 pm
Eagle2 i hope we dont fizzle out this year to. Yea everytime I see that kid Leslie on ESPN i remember being in Gwinnett. You had a great team then i thought the 2nd best in the state at that time. LOL. The funny thing is South Atlanta has some new pieces who are very good. That no one knows about. But when it comes to 5AAAAA basketball its going to take preparation hard work, and dedication to win in this classfication. Columbia better be ready for SOuth Atlanta, dont forget Monroe either!!!!
Eagle2
February 8th, 2010
12:50 pm
Yeah T4W it is gonna be tough for you all up in AAAAA and i wish you all well. Your guys are good and I would like to see them win it all (the trash talk is fun and games). hopefully all of them region six teams beat up on each other too bad and cancel each other out. You better believe columbia is not overlooking Monroe, SA, Elbert, or Westover. all of them are good teams but what i can say is, i seriously doubt they are any tougher than any of the teams we have faced on a national level this year.
Hoops Fan
February 8th, 2010
12:52 pm
Does anyone know what happens if both Campbell and Walton end up 8-5 in region 6A, Who gets the 2 seed. They split the series.
Jon Koncak
February 8th, 2010
1:12 pm
No respect for the ECI Lady Dawgs…only undefeated A team in rankings and they are #8? No one has even played them close this year.
W/E
February 8th, 2010
1:29 pm
the next tiebreaker is subregion record then overall record I think.
Al Beeski
February 8th, 2010
1:30 pm
Nice job doing these rankings Todd, as I’m pretty sure you haven’t seen most teams South of Macon. First, everyone needs to take a chill pill because you will soon find out how good your region/team is against the rest of the state. And one tidbit of info, you might find helpful concerning 1-AAA, is that Westover has not lost a game with their top player (Onochie Ochie) as he missed about 1 month after a serious fall in the opening minutes against Monroe during their first meeting. All three of Westover’s losses were without the services of Ochie.As we all know injuries are part of the game, but don’t overlook Westover if completely healthy. But I can’t wait for the playoffs to start as it should be exciting.
W/E
February 8th, 2010
1:34 pm
Todd the qtrs. in the region 6AAAAA tourney aren’t played at Campbell, they’re played at the higher-seeded team’s gym. It’s the semis onward that are played at Campbell. So whoever gets the 3-seed out of the a subregion will be going to Milton to play that game.
WheelerFan
February 8th, 2010
2:05 pm
sadly region 6 rotates the region tourney semis and finals, reagrdless of gym size..last year was nice cause alpharetta had a great gym, but the year before sprayberry hosted and maybe 500 people got to see wheeler-centennial final that year, what a crap gym sprayberry has
Devil Lover
February 8th, 2010
2:06 pm
Here is the lastest objective poll, Maxprep national, rankings for the top six 5A teams in GA:
Milton – 38, Norcross – 141, Westlake – 169, Wheeler – 198, Centennial 396, Walton 1,160
G-dub
February 8th, 2010
2:08 pm
Like I said before, coverage is very weak. Saturday night you had defending 5A champ and still undefeated Redan girls against 2 time defending 4A champ SWD. Great game but if I had not witnessed it for myself I would not know who won because ajc coverage is so weak. If it were Parkview vs Brookwood I’m sure we would have had enough by now. You guys need to stop being so obvious or learn good basketball is not only played on the north side.
Devil Lover
February 8th, 2010
2:33 pm
My understanding for region 7 is the coaches vote each year on where they will play the regional tournament. Also I think the no1 (and maybe no2 as well) team for the regular season gets a bye to the regional semis so this would ensure an automatic trip to the state tournament for them as well.
Brandon Dozier
February 8th, 2010
3:00 pm
Meadowcreek should be #1….Go Mustangs!!
Eagle 1
February 8th, 2010
3:58 pm
Well Well Well…I see my boyz are here!!Thanks guys i dont have to say anything!!lol
Aye Todd: We got your back,please make it easier on yourslf and direct all of the Columbia Question to us. We will be delighted to answer them for you(AJC). No disrespect to anyone,but know one is on our level right now.
Wins & losses dosent win championships!!
Preperation does!!!!!!
Takin your team around the World to educate and prepare the students physically and mentally for March. And no we havent forgoten about S.Atlanta,Lagrange,Monroe,Elbert,Westover etc…they are all good,talented and well coached.
So are the Columbia Eagles!!!! We have seen it all this year! Thanks Coach Dr.McCrary for giving our kids a Chance to compete in Ga AAA come Tourney time!!! Lol
Coach
February 8th, 2010
4:15 pm
Todd, you have Rabun County girls at 18-2. They are 19-1.
Todd Holcomb
February 8th, 2010
4:15 pm
G-dub: I have no say in which games are covered and how we cover them, but as far as coverage of Gwinnett vs. DeKalb, I don’t see the same pattern you are seeing. I’ve done stories on Norcross, GAC and Wesleyan, but also Tucker and Miller Grove. This week, I believe Michael Carvell is going to the Redan girls game. Mike Tierney wrote a nice feature on Redan’s Alisha Andrews earlier this season. Chip Saye is going to Columbia on Friday for a story on the success of the girls and boys programs.
justthefacts: I didn’t mean to imply that controversy somehow excuses Westlake’s loss to Morrow. I was just pointing out that it was controversial. Probably should not have mentioned it. I generally ignore ‘excuses’ for losing, such as injuries. Also, it’s tricky to factor in ”who’s playing the best right now,” because then you have to define when ”right now” started. Was it Jan. 1? Jan. 15? It’s hard to ignore who’s hot and who’s not, but it also invites a lot of subjective judgment.
indianman
February 8th, 2010
4:23 pm
what thos vidalia indians girl no.1 in the state way to go girls
Eagle 1
February 8th, 2010
5:05 pm
Columbia is 20-5 Todd!!!
Devil Lover
February 8th, 2010
5:08 pm
join me on a good blog norcrosshighbasketball.blogspot and of course .com.
waltonfan40
February 8th, 2010
6:43 pm
Pope-Walton webcast tomorrow night at http://www.playballyall.com
pembrook burrows III
February 8th, 2010
7:16 pm
what does it take for Hillgrove to drop out of the rankings? They lost to Woodland.
Todd Holcomb
February 8th, 2010
7:31 pm
“what does it take for Hillgrove to drop out of the rankings? They lost to Woodland.”
I’m asking myself the same, but Hillgrove remains in first place of a region with 20-something teams (or close to it). Sure seems like the people’s poll is telling me that the Hillgrove/McEachern is the overrated triangle of Cobb County.
“Columbia is 20-5 Todd!!!”
Aren’t schools allowed to play just 25 regular-season games? Columbia has three games this week. What’s the deal?
wheelerfan
February 8th, 2010
9:30 pm
What more does wheeler have to do to move up? they keep winning and winning against top rated talent yet they get nothing to show for it. Great win by Centennial ill give them that, but when Wheeler beat Milton, nothing happened.
Right now there is not a team playing better than wheeler, maybe norcross, but i feel as if neither of us are being represented properly
Region 6
February 8th, 2010
9:42 pm
Wheelerfan, we are ranked in the top 5? How much respect do you want? Lost to Campbell and Centennial and beat Milton when they were missing a starter. Still ranked up there high and could go higher with wins this week vs Campbell, Pope, and Walton.
Bruin 777
February 8th, 2010
10:25 pm
Again, 8 AAAA girls overlooked. Salem, Clarke, Madison, Loganville all can beat Forest Park, Bainbridge and Statesboro. I realize you go by record but strenght of schedule should matter.
W/E
February 8th, 2010
10:30 pm
I agree with Region 6. Wheeler’s on a roll right now, but I’d wait for this week to end before arguing for them to be moved up. If Wheeler wins out this week then I feel they are worthy of Top-3 consideration, but winning out isn’t a guarantee with Campbell tomorrow, Pope Thursday (who’s better than their 3 wins in region suggest), and the capper against Walton Friday.
Fin
February 9th, 2010
1:07 am
I think Wheeler has a lot to prove and they are going to be out for revenge versus Campbell (On a side note, I wonder why no other school has tried to get Coach Gwinn of Campbell to their school. He is a great coach and he does a lot with very little). Wheeler should beat Pope soundly which sets up a great showdown against Walton for the season finale. In order for Wheeler to win the region, does Milton have to lose another game or what’s the deal?
Devil Lover
February 9th, 2010
6:57 am
Here is the lastest objective poll for Massey national rankings for the top six 5A teams in GA:
Milton 47, Norcross 127, Westlake 173, Meadowcreek 301, Centennial 478, Walton 774
Region 6
February 9th, 2010
8:54 am
Fin, Wheeler can win their side of the region with wins this week. That will secure a 2 seed unless Centennial loses a game they shouldn’t. Milton will be a 3 seed in that case. So the likely scenario has:
1. Centennial
2. Wheeler
3. Milton
4. Campbell or Walton
That sets up a Wheeler/Milton matchup in the Final 4 which would be next Thursday at Campbell HS. Good luck getting in.
Decatur 4 Life
February 9th, 2010
9:05 am
Truth4Westlake
“Tread softly”? Man please, do you honestly think we’re concerned about S. Atlanta? No way, once again better check our track record. We didn’t just start this winning stuff if you had already done your research you’d see we’ve been to the final four the last five years, winning the championship twice in that stretch. I hope to see S. Atlanta in Macon this year so they can get what’s coming to them but to be honest with you it won’t happen. They don’t have the same kind of team and they haven’t played anybody, all those factors lead to an early playoff loss.
Mark my words!
Decatur 4 Life
February 9th, 2010
9:22 am
Todd Holcomb
Can’t wait for Saturday’s article, you’re right both of Columbia’s team are major state contenders. Our girls were the only team that played Carrollton tough last season and it took double overtime to get rid of them in the elite 8. Our boys lost a tough one to S. Atlanta in the final four last season playing a little short handed but redemption is going to be sweet for both teams this season
Truth4Westlake
February 9th, 2010
10:15 am
Wheeler doesnt deserve to move up becasue rankings are based on a few things. A few of those things are wins and losses and how hot are you at the time. Granted you have had a great Jannuary, but you had a devastating December becasue of Mr. Kendrick and Milton has played a tougher schedule to date. Of course we took care of Centennial early so thats why we got the nod at #1. The beauty is everything will be worked out in a few weeks. Westlake has won the state in AAA, and AAAA. what make you think we wont in AAAAA. First year in AAAAA we went to the final four last year we cant do nothing but get better!!!!
v dog fan
February 9th, 2010
10:18 am
proud of the vidalia lndians girls team for defening their number one ranking and beating laney in overtime last friday night lndians # 1!!!!!!!
Dan
February 9th, 2010
10:51 am
Not after #3 NW Whitfield defeats #1 Rome tonight in girls 4A
Chris Jackson
February 9th, 2010
10:57 am
Grove’s lost was to Meadowcreek.
W/E
February 9th, 2010
11:40 am
Region 6 you have the playoff formatting wrong. It’s not a 1-10 seeding process. The region is divided into two subregions. A- which is Wheeler, Walton, Campbell, Pope, and Lassiter, Then B- Milton, Centennial, Kell, Roswell, and Alpharetta. This is how the region tourny would shape up
The tournament shapes like this. For the sake of less confusion I’m numbering some of the games.
Play-in round
6A 5 seed vs. 6B 4 seed (Game 1)
6B 5 seed vs. 6A 4 seed (Game 2)
qtrs.-@ higher seeds gym
6A 1 seed vs winner of Game 1 (Game 3)
6A 2 seed vs 6B 3 seed (Game 4)
6B 1 seed vs winner of Game 2 (Game 5)
6B 2 seed vs. 6A 3 seed (Game 6)
Semis (teams in state tourney) @Campbell
Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 6
Winner of Game 4 vs. Winner of Game 5
You can figure the seeding from there.
So the result would be the 3rd team of Wheeler/Walton/Campbell playing Milton in Fulton county in a game to knock one out of the state playoffs. Wheeler has a 1-game lead on both at the moment
W/E
February 9th, 2010
11:44 am
But it would likely lead to a Wheeler- Milton Semifinal. Although if the tournament format stays the same as last year and the two years before that which it should, the semis are on Friday instead of Thursday and the finals on Saturday.
Todd Holcomb
February 9th, 2010
2:10 pm
“What more does wheeler have to do to move up? they keep winning and winning against top rated talent yet they get nothing to show for it. Great win by Centennial ill give them that, but when Wheeler beat Milton, nothing happened. Right now there is not a team playing better than wheeler”
We can’t rank teams strictly based on how they’re playing ‘’right now.’’ It’s how they’ve played all season that matters most. If you rank based on ‘’right now,’’ then when did ‘’right now” start? Is it last week? Is it a month ago? Is it when Wheeler’s winning streak began? Should we not consider that Centennial not only beat Milton, but also beat Wheeler? Only a fool would not respect Wheeler, but as other posters noted, you can’t ignore early losses.
“I realize you go by record but strenght of schedule should matter.”
Bruin: If you look at the W-L records throughout the rankings, it’s clear that we do consider strength of schedule. We’ve got a 5-loss team at No. 1 ahead of an undefeated team in one classification. But what is so strong about Region 8-AAAA’s schedule (girls)? This region didn’t shine in the state playoffs last year. So how do you figure the strength of schedule is all that good? You’ll have to tell us what we’re missing.
Eagle 1
February 9th, 2010
2:17 pm
@Todd i was just counting the remainder of games too. Those are teams we beat already.Lol
Eagles1
February 9th, 2010
4:06 pm
Columbia lost their games in out of state Tournaments. DUH….
Eagles1
February 9th, 2010
4:24 pm
Todd,
Those games dont count he same.
braNew2
February 9th, 2010
5:57 pm
HOW ABOUT THE GIRLS AAAAA #1 REDAN RAIDERS. THESE YOUNG LADIES HAVE WON 49 STRAIGHT GAMES AND DO NOT SEEM TO BE SLOWIN DO NO TIME SOON.
Dylan
February 9th, 2010
8:21 pm
#3 Northwest Whitfield: 68
#1 Rome: 58
Final.
Who’s will take the #1 spot in AAAA next week, Todd? Northwest Whitfield or Southwest DeKalb?
GO LADY BRUINS!!
Fin
February 9th, 2010
8:56 pm
I thought Wheeler had at least a share of the Number 1 spot in region 6(5)A.
Fin
February 9th, 2010
10:21 pm
Wheeler beats Campbell by 4
Chamblee Ladies
February 9th, 2010
10:52 pm
Should be in the top ten. 17-3 lost two games to #2 Southwest Dekalb and lost to AAAAA Stephenson come on show a little respect.
westlake
February 9th, 2010
11:25 pm
i hate these ranking i go to westlake n these dudes work hard lol they got 6 a.m practice afternoon practice they work hard to beat those sorry teams they play u cant call them sorry cause out of all the schools n that area that they play suck no those teams dont really suck westlake makes good teams look bad lol n yall act like westlake plays a whole bunch of langston hughes schools westlake is number one but for real i hate the ranking lol they dont mean nothing cause everyone play dif teams
westlake
February 9th, 2010
11:30 pm
Truth4Westlake
i can tell thats u chad johnson lol
3 Straight
February 10th, 2010
7:56 am
HEY TODD. HERE IS NORCROSS’ UPDATED RANKINGS;
GA COACHES’ NO.1, GA SPORTSWRITERS NO.1, MAXPREP NO.3, MASSEY NO.4, AJC NO.5.
TODD WHY DO YOU THINK NORCROSS IS ONLY NO.5 WHEN THE REST OF POLLSTERS THINK THEY ARE BETTER COMPARED TO THE 5A CLASS?
3 Straight
February 10th, 2010
8:07 am
CORRECTIONS
GA COACHEDS’ NO.1, GA SPORTSWRITERS NO.1, MASSEY NO.2, MAXPREP NO.3 (FOR THE ENTIRE STATE) AND THEN AJC NO.5………..WHY?
LAST NIGHT GAME-WON BY 50 PTS
PREVIOUS 3 GAMES-WON BY AN AVG 35 PTS
Bufordwolf
February 10th, 2010
9:56 am
GAC girls or Vidalia girls shouldnt be ranked higher than Buford girls. Buford Girls and GAC have the same record in their region. Both teams lost to each other once, GAC lost at their place by 14 and Buford lost at hoime by 4 in overtime playing one of the worst games they could!!
You all know Buford is going to take it home again, Im just confused on how GAC could possibly be ranked higher than Buford, are you kidding me!
Come out in about a week or so to watch them smash the lady spartans at their place for region! The rankings will change then, thats ofr sure!
Oh yea and norcross girls should be number 1!
Hoops Fan
February 10th, 2010
9:58 am
3 Straight wins against over matched teams by 35 points just says they are not playing their reserves early enough. Norcross should have played better in state teams though when they did they lost. Thomas Jefferson if it is the team from Brooklyn is a Quality win. I don’t know there other out of state opponents. 7AAAAA is a weak division and I will be interest if they have to meet more then 1 of the 6AAAAA teams in the playoff if they can play a good team more the once every month. Seen Norcross play on the web. They have talent and our well coached but it is hard to tell if that translates against another as talanted team. 6AAAAA teams must come to play every night because the division is so stacked. If any team should be complaining it is Campbell which has a lot of young talent and well coached team but does not crack the top 10 list.
Bufordwolf
February 10th, 2010
10:01 am
Buford has been beating teams by 25 points and up! lost to SW dekalb by what 8? wouldve been closer but they had to foul and the end of the game, and one loss takes us from the number one sport to the number 3?? Vidalia plays no one whatsoever deep south ga teams are a little overatted.
Ike Boogie
February 10th, 2010
10:29 am
Hey guys somebody sleepin on Newton County Rams 22-1
Ike Boogie
February 10th, 2010
10:35 am
Put on the floor with any team, when they are allowed to run, they can out up 90-100 ponits easy, with the 8 man rotation remind you of runnin rebels (UNLV)….
Crazy Hoops
February 10th, 2010
12:20 pm
Me thinks some of these teams with these “pretty” and “attractive” records against weak and inferior non-region and region competition will be exposed come state playoffs in a couple weeks.
Unfortunately in Class AAAAA boys teams from Region 1-4 will make their way to the Final Four the easy way. Let Region 5-8 lightweights Campbell, Meadowcreek, McEachern and a few others play in that bracket and they will also coast to the Final Four. Says here that the trend continues in AAAAA that the state champion will come from Region 5-8. The BIG exception is Westlake. They are the only legit contender in the South brackets because they have the three main qualities in talent, coaching and strong schedule to compete with team in the North bracket.
Newton County: Heard some good things about your team from a reliable coach. He thinks team plays well together and doesn’t beat themselves in most cases. Unfortunably, the Rams have not played anyone of quality to really make a fair assessment. I wouldn’t be surprise if you all made the Final Four, because much like the weak non-region and region schedule you play, you have a weak state playoff bracket. If things were to stay the same, he is your road to the Gwinnett Arena – Tift County, Newnan and Savannah. Enjoy the ride.
bballfan
February 10th, 2010
1:22 pm
Bufordwolf, get your facts straight. Buford won the first meeting with GAC by 7, not 14. Polls mean nothing and will always reflect “what have you done lately”. The 2 teams will likely meet again next week and the winner will be ranked higher. The only thing that really matters, though is that final ranking.