FROM THE PREP ZONE BLOGS AT AJC.COM

Class AAAAAA

The fifth-ranked Westlake’s boys are 14-1 despite losing their three best players from last season, including guard Anthony Bagtas to Penn. Westlake won an important Region 3 game last week against 10th-ranked Douglas County, 74-73. Point guard Raymond Sanders scored 24 points. Saunders and combo guard Tyler Williams average 16.6 points per game. Dominic Joseph averages 10.2 points and 5.4 rebounds.

Here are some other things that happened last week in AAAAAA and the other classifications:

• Third-ranked Archer (15-1, 8-0) never trailed in its 51-42 victory Thursday against second-ranked Parkview (14-2, 6-1) in an 8-AAAAAA girls showdown. Point guard Madison Newby scored 17 points, made eight steals and had five rebounds. Parkview's top player, point guard Genesis Perrymond, was not a factor because of a shoulder injury.
• Duluth pulled a double shocker last week when it swept Norcross, the defending boys and girls state champions. Duluth's girls (8-7, 42) won 46-38. They had lost 13 consecutive to Norcross. Duluth's boys (10-5, 4-2) won 56-55 in overtime after trailing by 11 in the third quarter. They had lost 19 consecutive to Norcross. Bryce Wooten scored 10 points, had nine rebounds and made the game-winning layup with five seconds left. The last time Norcross was swept was Feb. 10, 2012, against North Gwinnett.
• Walton (12-1, 5-1) went from being the only undefeated boys team in AAAAAA to third place in Region 5 on Friday when beaten 72-58 by Milton (10-5, 5-0). Mo Lewis IV scored 18 points for the winning Eagles, who will play No. 1-ranked Wheeler (10-4, 6-0) for the region lead Thursday.

Class AAAAA

• Second-ranked Allatoona and No. 5 Clarke Central — the only two remaining undefeated boys teams in AAAAA — continue rolling. Allatoona improved to 15-0 overall and 8-0 in Region 5 by beating Woodland-Cartersville 68-39 on Friday. The Buccaneers have had only three games this season decided by 10 points or less. Clarke Central is 13-0 overall and 8-0 in Region 8 after a 67-41 victory against Gainesville. It was the Gladiators' first game since beating Martin County (Fla.) on Dec. 28.
• Jakeenan Gant had 23 points, 17 rebounds and four blocked shots as the sixth-ranked Effingham County boys team routed Richmond Hill on Friday to remain within a game of No. 4 Jenkins in the race for first place in Region 3. Gant, a first-team all-state player last season who signed with Missouri, averages 23.9 points, 11. 4 rebounds and 4.0 blocks for the Rebels (10-6, 5-1). Effingham, which lost to Jenkins 65-58 on Dec. 10, gets a rematch with the Warriors at home Jan. 21.
• The dominant performance of the week by a girls team came from seventh-ranked Drew (12-3), which rolled to a 66-13 victory against Ola on Friday. Drew led 24-0 at the end of the first quarter and 42-4 at halftime, according to the Clayton News Daily. Drew opened the week with a 58-43 victory against Union Grove.

Class AAAA

• With a talented, senior-laden lineup, Redan's girls appear to be the team to beat in AAAA. But two-time defending state champion Columbia isn't going to make it easy. Redan built a 22-point halftime lead, but had to hold on for a 75-74 victory against Columbia on Friday. "We were hot in the first half," Redan coach Jerry Jackson said. "They got hot in the second half." Redan (14-0, 2-0 Region 6) is the only undefeated AAAA girls team in the state. Columbia hosts Redan in the rematch Jan. 18.
• Region 5, the classification's toughest region in football, also is setting up to be one of the top AAAA boys basketball regions. The region features the No. 2- and No. 3-ranked teams Sandy Creek and Fayette County, respectively. But it was unranked Alexander that sat atop the region at 3-0, after a 67-44 victory against LaGrange on Friday.
• Tylik Evans made all five of Rutland's 3-pointers and finished with 26 points in the Hurricanes' victory against Perry. No. 6 Rutland is tied with Veterans atop Region 2. Veterans won at Rutland, 51-50, on Dec. 3. The second meeting is scheduled for Friday.

Class AAA

• The Decatur girls won their seventh consecutive game Friday and appear ready to challenge St. Pius in Region 6. The Bulldogs defeated Cedar Grove 73-24 and improved to 11-3 overall and 3-1 in the region. They haven't lost since dropping three in a row in early December to AA power Greater Atlanta Christian, defending state champion St. Pius and defending AA champion Wesleyan. The Lions lost a tough four-point decision at St. Pius and a five-point game at Wesleyan.
• No. 9 North Oconee had its 34-game region winning streak broken this week, but began a new one Friday against its county rival. The Titans (12-3, 5-1) beat Oconee County 62-42 in the Coaches vs. Cancer series. North Oconee's all-state candidate, Ginny Channell, scored 21 points despite not playing the second quarter because of foul trouble. Abby DeFabio scored 15 points, and Carmen Williams added 13. North Oconee was coming off a 57-41 loss to Franklin County in Danielsville, where the Lions (11-4) are undefeated. Franklin leads Region 8. The two teams play again Jan. 28 in Watkinsville.
• The jousting for position in Region 7 behind the Buford girls continued Friday. White County improved to 10-2, and North Hall improved to 10-3. White beat East Hall 39-34 behind a 12-point, eight-rebound effort of Paige Thomas. The victory improved the Warriors to 3-2 in the league. North Hall had a 61-60 victory against Dawson County after 25 points and 11 rebounds from Sydney Cleveland. The Trojans improved to 3-1 in the league and gave Dawson its third region loss, despite 25 points from Sheyenne Seabolt.

Class AA