Class 7A blog: 5 second-round basketball games match top-10 teams

The Class 7A state playoffs resume Friday and Saturday after a calm first round.

Higher-seeded teams, all playing at home, were 28-4 in the first round, and none of the four winners was especially surprising.

Archer’s boys, as a fourth seed, beat ninth-ranked Camden County, the Region 1 champion, 53-46, but Archer had spent more weeks in the top-10 than Camden this season. Camden missed a great chance to win its first state-playoff game since the 1970s.

Berkmar’s boys, another team ranked most of the season, won at second-seeded Lambert 70-35.

Carrollton’s, also ranked for several weeks, won at Hillgrove 71-58

North Cobb was the only girls team to win on the road. The Warriors beat unranked Mill Creek 45-40.

The second round has five games between top-10 teams.

They are No. 4 Newton at No. 2 McEachern (boys), No. 10 Norcross at No. 5 Buford (boys), No. 6 Walton at No. 8 Milton (boys), No. 8 McEachern at No. 1 Grayson (girls) and No. 4 Carrollton at No. 10 Lowndes (girls).

BOYS

R1 #2 Valdosta at R2 #1 Campbell

R7 #3 Berkmar at R5 #1 Wheeler

R4 #2 Newton at R3 #1 McEachern

R7 #2 Norcross at R8 #1 Buford

R8 #2 Mountain View at R7 #1 Peachtree Ridge

R2 #3 Carrollton at R4 #1 Grayson

R5 #2 Walton at R6 #1 Milton

R4 #4 Archer at R2 #2 Pebblebrook

GIRLS

R1 #2 Colquitt County at R2 #1 Campbell

R6 #2 Lambert at R5 #1 Cherokee

R4 #2 Newton at R3 #1 North Paulding

R7 #2 North Gwinnett at R8 #1 Buford