AJC > Sports > Highschools > Blog > Archives > 2007 > February > 28
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Drama queens reign in girls bracket
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Maybe it was growing up witnessing the respect my father had for my mother.
Maybe it’s because I have a sister and a daughter. Whatever the reason, I have an affinity for girls’ basketball.
It makes my skin crawl when the chauvinists — you know who you are — sound off about how they do not see the value of females playing hoops. They complain about the pace of the game and that they are no prospects for dunks — weak attempts to hide their prejudices.
That clear, how about this: the best basketball in this state tournament will be played by the girls. The boys Norcross-Meadowcreek matchup Thursday should be exciting and worth witnessing. The winner should be AAAAA champions, although Peachtree Ridge might weigh in on that.
In AAAA, if Columbia doesn’t win it all, it’ll be a significant upset. That’s about all the drama in boys.
With the girls, there is much more suspense. Will Maya Moore’s brilliant career end with another title for No. 1 Collins Hill? Or will No. 2 Stephenson or No. 3 South Gwinnett wrest away the AAAAA title?
Will Kelley Cain reign queen of AAAA once more? Or will upstart SW DeKalb make a big push?
And probably most exciting will be the AA battle between No. 1 Greater Atlanta Christian, last year’s AAA titlist Avondale and two-time champion Wesleyan.
Barring upsets in their next games, Avondale and GAC should meet this weekend in a must-see confrontation.
There will not be any dunks in the girls game, but then who said basketball was all about dunking. You can rest assured the competition will be fierce and the quality of play as high as any boys game. One of the best games I ever saw was Stephenson’s championship win over Collins Hill three years ago. It was so hotly contested and emotional the I felt drained when it was over.
This year’s tournament promises more of the same. Most all the girls’ action merits your attention, far more so than the boys — no matter what the chauvinists might tell you.
Permalink | Comments (10) | Post your comment | Categories: Curtis Bunn
