On the first night down of the Sweet 16, 5 of our local teams were in action, with 3 advancing to the Elite 8 – Rabun County girls, Commerce girls, and Tallulah Falls girls. 8 more locals were in action on Saturday, and 4 more punched their quarterfinals tickets; that being the Towns boys, Lumpkin girls, and Jefferson boys and girls.

FULL BRACKETS

GIRLS

#1 Lumpkin County Lady Indians 90, #2 Tattnall County 30

The Lady Indians absolutely crushed Tattnall…there’s no other way to put it. It was 73-18 going into the final quarter and 24-5 at the end of the first. Junior Kate Jackson eclipsed 500 career rebounds in the process, as Lumpkin returns to the Elite 8.

#1 Jefferson Lady Dragons 63, #2 Troup County 47

A 63-47 convincing win for the Lady Dragons gets Jefferson back into the Elite 8. Troup County proved to be little resistance.

#1 Rabun County Lady Wildcats 54, #2 Woodville-Tompkins 44

The Lady Cats won 54-44 in a tight contest at home against Woodville-Tompkins. Carley Haban had 22 points and 5 rebounds, and Sophie Woodard had 11 points. Gracie Deetz finished with 10 points, 9 rebounds, 5 steals, and 4 blocks in a do-it-all performance. Rabun advances to the Elite 8.

#1 Tallulah Falls Lady Indians 51, #3 Heritage 26

The Lady Indians left no doubt they were worthy of their first-ever Elite 8 trip. Veronaye Charlton and Denika Lightbourne had 14 and 12 points, respectively for TFS. After an 11-2 first quarter, Tallulah Falls began to pull away with each quarter until the 51-26 final.

#2 Commerce Lady Tigers 47, #1 Clinch County 33

Commerce again came up with an upset win, 47-33 over Clinch County. This gets the Lady Tigers back in to the Elite 8.

#1 Josey 41, #3 Banks County Lady Leopards 31

The Lady Leopards dropped a tough low-scoring game to Josey on the road, ending their season at 10-18 overall. Kamryn Grier dropped in 16 points, Carley Segars had 5, and the girls fought hard til the very end.

#2 Laney def #4 Union County Lady Panthers

Union County fell at Laney to end their season. It marked the final game in an illustrious career for Ava Hunter, Union County’s all-time leading scorer.

BOYS

#1 Jefferson Dragons 64, #3 Westside-Macon 62

The Dragons move on to the Elite 8 to take on Westover after a thrilling 64-62 W over Westside-Macon! Dalen Gales led with 25 points and 6 rebounds and Kadin Bailey added 16 points and 7 boards.

#2 Woodville-Tompkins 72, #1 Rabun County Wildcats 63 (OT)

It was the ultimate heart-breaker for the Rabun County Wildcats, who lost in overtime to a great Woodville-Tompkins team. This ends the Wildcats’ season in the Sweet 16.

#4 Beach 57, #2 White County Warriors 52

The Cinderella run for #4-seed Beach continues ina 57-52 win over White County, who ends their season in the Sweet 16. It was last tied with about 5 minutes to play, and White County led by 4 heading into the final quarter.

#1 Greenforest 80, #2 Tallulah Falls Indians 34

The Indians couldn’t get much going on either end of the ball, as Tallulah Falls fell 80-34 at Greenbrier to end their season in the Sweet 16.

#2 Towns County Indians 58, #1 Charlton County 51

Towns County kept their title hopes alive with a 58-51 win at Charlton County. Despite working against Charlton’s 6’8 center, Towns had a 9-point first half lead before Charlton raced back. The Indians went up 10 before Charlton eventually evened the game at 48. Collin Crowder and Zane Floyd hit huge buckets to spark the Indians on a 10-3 run to close the game. Floyd hit a huge 3 with 2 minutes left to put the Indians up by 3. Floyd also had a game-winning steal to seal the game. Crowder led in scoring with 29, while Floyd pitched in 12 points. Towns County advances to the Elite 8 to face Manchester on the road, and this marks their 20th win of the season.

#1 Dublin 70, #3 Commerce Tigers 41

The Tigers dropped a 70-41 final at Dublin to end their season, as Cayden Lord finished with 9 points and Kemanni Horne had 8.