With a team loaded with seniors – many of the four-year starters – there’s no surprise that the Union Grove girls are in the middle of a terrific season.
The No. 1-ranked Wolverines (18-1) enjoyed a 61-48 win over No. 4 Warner Robins on Tuesday, beating a team that played for the state championship last season. Union Grove beat No. 8 Jones County 49-39 on Thursday and leads the Region 2 standings at 8-0.
“There’s seven of them that started with us as freshmen four years ago,” Union Grove coach Dock Gammage said. “A lot of them were on varsity that first year and some of them started. Last year all of them were on the varsity, so it’s been a lot of continuity. You don’t have the re-teach a bunch of stuff to a bunch of new people.”
The Wolverines went 23-8 last season, 11-1 in the region, and reached the third round of the state playoffs before losing to Maynard Jackson, one of the teams expected to be a contender again this season.
The top players on thee team are seniors Nadea Smith and Jordan Brooks. Smith, a 5-foot-11 forward, averages 13.5 points and 7.4 rebounds. Brooks, a 5-5 point guard, averages 13.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 3.7 steals.
“Nadia dominates the boards and scores a lot inside,” Gammage said. “Jordan just calms everybody down. She runs the play you need and when you need to score she’s going to find a way to get it to Nadia or she’s going to find a way to get a shot for herself or somebody else on the court. She’s the consummate point guard.”
Union Grove has plenty of other pieces, too. Moriah Miller (7.4 points, 3.8 rebounds) and Alexis Parson (5.8 points, 4.9 rebounds) are scoring threats and Julia Baker (5.3 points) is the defensive stopper who is usually asked to shut down the opponent’s top scorer.
Union Grove averages 53 points per game and have allowed only 50 points in four games, one of them against Class A powerhouse Hebron Christian.
“Defense is the thing I push more than anything,” Gammage said. “You’ve got to be ready defensively every night and we’re getting so much better with rotations and understanding what our role is and what we’re trying to do against the other team.”
Gammage said the team has remained focused, despite being ranked No. 1 in Class 5A.
“It’s funny because I don’t heard them talking about it,” Gammage said. “You would think there would be a buzz, but I’ve been preaching that it’s one game at a time and worry about the next game and not get caught up in worrying about what people think of us. They haven’t gotten in the hype like you think they might.”
About the Author
