McDONOUGH — As time wound off the clock in the closing minutes Friday night at McDonough High School, the chant emanating from the purple-and-gold clad fans behind the Jones County bench summed it all up. “Back-to-back! Back-to-back!”
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The Lady Greyhounds and Woodland may have split the pair of games between the two teams in the regular season, but Jones County rose to the occasion when it mattered the most, taking things over in the second half to win 65-51 and capture their second region title in a row.
“This is a special group. They bonded together; all the work we did, summer, league, fall league, preseason, it paid off,” Lady Greyhounds head coach Takeo Gray said. “They say that the only team that can beat the Lady Hounds is the Lady Hounds, and they proved it.”
Jubilation spilled over for the Lady Hounds as time ran out, starting a celebration that began on the court and into the nearby locker room.
But being able to raise a region championship trophy two years straight could not be mistaken for ease on Friday. Jones County had to contend with a gym of all but one section cheering against them, not to mention a Woodland team that rallied early to lead 11-10 through a quarter.
But the Lady Hounds kept pace early from long distance, getting key first-half three-pointers from Desirae Dumas and Aubrey Norris. Still, JCHS trailed 25-22 at halftime, an open span that not only saw Kamiyah Adams limited to six first-half points but also briefly sidelined with a nosebleed from an on-court collision early in the second quarter.
In perhaps a bit of irony, Adams began the second half like a shark smelling blood in the water for the Lady Hounds, who were limited with Norris picking up her fourth foul less than a minute into the third quarter.
But Adams, her nostril plugged up from the earlier nosebleed, got hot, scoring 12 of her 29 points in the third quarter, part of a night in which she also pulled down 20 rebounds.
“She told us to get on her back and that she would take it home,” Gray said. “She did.”
Back-to-back possessions saw Adams first drain a pair of free throws and then convert a turnaround jumper for a 31-24 lead, and two more free throws with 4:25 to go in the third expanded the JCHS ead to 33-24.
“We worked for this. I’m glad we were able to take this home,” Adams said. “They may not like us, but they’re going to respect us.”
The Wolfpack rallied, getting traction inside to tie things early in the fourth quarter at 40-40. That’s when Adams and company countered. One trip down the floor after the game was tied, Adams drained a three pointer, a shot followed by Norris coming back in the game to convert a well-timed layup for a 45-40 advantage. Norris finished with 18 points, five rebounds, and five assists with Liberty Pennamon adding 11 points.
But there were others to step up, as well.
“The unsung hero for us with Zandrea Thomas. She came in, played hard defensively, and shut their best player down,” Gray said.
As the clock slowly grinded its way through the fourth quarter, Jones County simply had too many answers for Woodland. The Lady Hounds helped themselves at the free-throw line as well, hitting 10-of-16 shots from the charity stripe in the fourth quarter.
Whether it was a layup by Norris, score off a rebound by Adams, or Autumn Coleman layup for a 10-point lead with 3:02 left, JCHS overwhelmed Woodland for its second region title in a row, making the trip worth it for those fans traveling to Henry County from Gray.
“Jones County has the best fans,” Gray said. “We have the best fans in the GHSA.”
Jones County opens the state tournament at home Feb. 27.
Zandrea Thomas battles for position in the paint against Woodland.
BRAD HARRISON/Staff
