Class 2A blog: Playoff predictions

I have the top-ranked Columbia Eagles (27-1) beating the Spencer Greenwave Owls (23-4) to end an 11-year title drought and give longtime Eagles coach, Dr. Phil McCrary, a sixth championship. The Eagles won five championships in seven years from 2006-2012, and last reached the championship in 2021. The Owls won 4A last year, the only title in program history.

However, the Eagles will have an incredibly tough road to the title game, starting with Round 1, where they face the No. 1 Drew Charter Eagles (20-7). Drew Charter entered the Region 6 tournament ranked No. 3, but suffered a pair of losses to eventual 6-2A champions South Atlanta, then No. 9 North Cobb Christian in the consolation game.

Aside from Spencer, others that Columbia could face should they continue to advance is Union County, Windsor Forest, defending champions Westside. Union County (18-9) upset No. 3 Providence Christian on Jan. 20. Windsor Forest (21-6), ranked No. 7, could be waiting in the quarterfinals. In the semis, the No. 2 Westside Patriots (20-7) return their top players from last season as they seek back-to-back titles. The Owls won 4A last year.

However, there is a lot of basketball to be played between now and the championship, which is scheduled for a 3 p.m. tip-off on March 9 at the Macon Coliseum — starting with Round 1.

Aside from Drew Charter-Columbia, there’s one other matchup between top 10 teams: No. 8 Thomson (16-8), a No. 4 seed from Region 4, travels to Windsor Forest, the No. 1 seed from Region 3. If a No. 1 seed were to go down in the first round, perhaps Windsor Forest is the most vulnerable, though I’ll give Region 8 No. 4 seed Athens Academy (16-11) a shot over Region 7′s top seed, Model (20-4).

Other first-round matchups I could see going either way are Toombs County (20-8; Region 3, No. 2 seed) at No. 5 Putnam County (21-6, R4, No. 3) and Banks County (19-8, R8, No. 3) at North Murray (22-3, R7, No. 2).

Now, onto the girls’ side. Here are those picks:

Credit: Predictions by Adam Krohn

Credit: Predictions by Adam Krohn

I have the top-ranked Mount Paran Christian Eagles (26-1) beating the No. 2 Central Macon Chargers (26-1) in the championship. The Eagles won 1A Private last year for their first title in program history. It would be unprecedented territory for the Chargers should they get that far. They’ve reached the quarterfinals twice and that was recently: Last year, and in 2017.

Notable opponents the Eagles could face along the way are a young-but-tough Thomson team, which won Region 4 with mostly sophomores and freshmen. The two could face in the quarterfinals.

I also have No. 3 seed Fannin County (18-8) advancing all the way to the semifinals in what some could consider an upset based on their starting position heading into the playoffs. However, the Rebels reached the quarters last season as a follow-up to reaching the championship in 2021, so the moment won’t be too big for them, and they have a strong enough team to compete with any team on their side of the bracket. It’s possible they could lose at any point, including in Round 1 against No. 10 Athens Academy (18-6).

Though there are no top 10 matchups in Round 1, there are a plethora of potential toss-ups beyond Fannin County-Athens Academy, including Callaway (17-7; R5, No. 3) at KIPP (21-7, R6, No. 2), Union County (14-13, R8, No. 4) at Murray County (20-4, R7, No. 1), North Cobb Christian (15-11, R6, No. 3) at Columbia (20-7; R6, No. 2), Laney (17-10, R4, No. 3) at Brantley County (16-11, R3, No. 2), Berrien (19-8, R1, No. 3) at Northeast (17-8, R2, No. 2), Butler (18-9, R4, No. 4) at Tattnall County (17-9, R3, No. 1), and East Jackson (12-16, R8, No. 3) at Model (15-10, R7, No. 2).

The girls championship is 1 p.m., March 9 at the Macon Coliseum.