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Tuesday, February 19, 2008
10 killer state tourney brackets
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The brackets are set, and the state tournament kicks off in a couple of days. We’ve been sitting around at Take Ten headquarters since Sunday studying these things like it’s March Madness in February.
What we notice every year, besides the fascinating matchups and the potential for big games down the road, is that some teams have it tougher than others. Some of them deserve that fate, and others sort of stumbled into it. But the nature of the bracket is that the best teams aren’t going to be evenly distributed, and some spots are going to make for difficult roads to the high school version of the Final Four.
So here are our top 10 toughest quadrants of the bracket in the boys and girls tournaments. For purposes of this list, think of the top left as No. 1, bottom left as No. 2, top right as No. 3 and bottom right as No. 4.
10. Boys AAA No. 1
Defending champ Jordan is No. 1 in the state, and the Red Jackets could have a huge second-round game with Region 3-AAA champ Glenn Hills, the No. 4 team that hasn’t lost to an in-state team this season. In the top half, you’ve got No. 5 Central Macon traveling to Northside-Columbus and a Dougherty team that took out No. 6 Westover to win the Region 1-AAA title.
9. Boys AAAAA No. 1
There are only two top-10 teams in this quadrant, but it’s a very strong grouping. No. 3 M.L. King may be the least known team in the state that’s ranked that highly, and the Lions have to travel for a tough game at Hiram. If they get by that, they should get Region 3-AAAAA champ Johnson-Savannah, which has the players to make a run at the Final Four. And No. 10 Coffee lurks on the other side with two solid teams, Stephenson and Newnan.
8. Girls AAA No. 3
No. 1 Hephzibah suffered its first in-state loss Saturday, but the Rebels are capable of winning state. But they likely will have to get through a second-round date with No. 4 Southwest-Macon, which eliminated Hephzibah last season. The winner could get No. 3 Kendrick, which came within one point of the state final last season.
7. Girls A No. 1
The top three teams in the state reside here, and the second round could look exactly like last season. No. 1 Terrell County has a potential second-round rematch with Treutlen, which ended the Greenwaves’ season last year. On the bottom half, No. 2 Savannah Country Day and No. 3 Taylor County could be bound for a rematch of their own, this time on the Hornets’ home court.
6. Boys A No. 4
Defending champ and No. 3 Wilkinson County barreled through this bracket last season but should have a tougher time. The Warriors’ reward for winning Region 7-A was to get No. 9 Eagles’ Landing Christian in the first round, with No. 10 Athens Academy possibly awaiting in the second. No. 6 Southwest Atlanta Christian is in the top half, looking to give Wilkinson one more tough one before making it to Macon.
5. Girls AA No. 4
No. 1 Wesleyan made it to the final last year, but the Wolves will have to work hard to get back there again. If they can get by Fannin County in the first round, they could have to travel to No. 9 Model in the second, while No. 6 Rutland and No. 10 Buford battle it out in the top part of the bracket, if they can get through their own difficult first-round matchups.
4. Boys AAAA No. 2
It’s proves how deep Region 6-AAAA is that defending champ and No. 4 Tucker is the No. 4 seed from the region. That leaves fans with a surprising first-round matchup between Tucker and No. 6 Dacula. Next to them in the bracket sits No. 9 Lithia Springs. On the bottom half is No. 7 Miller Grove, the Region 6-AAAA champs, and a well-coached Cherokee team.
3. Boys AAAAA No. 4
No. 2 Norcross vs. No. 8 Harrison is one of the most intriguing first-round games in any class, while a rematch of last year’s state final could come in the second round, if Norcross and No. 6 Centennial make it there. Another familiar matchup could come in the third round, where No. 5 Marietta lost to Norcross last season.
2. Girls AAAA No. 4
This is the only quadrant with five top-10 teams, and those aren’t the only quality teams there. No. 2 Marist will have to go on the road to make it back to the state final, first traveling to No. 10 Madison County before likely going to No. 9 Cherokee in the second round. On the bottom half, No. 7 Rome plays No. 6 Hillgrove, the first-year team that has had an excellent season. Also, Mays, which nearly won a very difficult Region 6-AAAA, hosts Salem, which has one of the best players in the state - Courtney Hurt.
1. Boys AAAA No. 4
Clarke Central made a nice run to get the runner-up spot in Region 8-AAAA, but playing No. 2 Columbia can’t be what the Gladiators had in mind. The winner of that game could get to travel to No. 5 Pebblebrook, a team that deserves much more attention that it has gotten. On the bottom side is No. 3 Rome, which hasn’t lost to an in-state opponent since early December, and No. 10 Stone Mountain, which proved its toughness in an upset of Columbia during the region tournament.
Go on. Take Ten. Who do you think has the toughest road in the playoffs? What’s the deepest side of the bracket? For that matter, what’s the weakest?
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