Rested Hounds eagerly await return to region play

BOYS BASKETBALL

  • Ranked as high as third, the Greyhounds host Dutchtown on Friday. BRAD HARRISON/Staff
    Ranked as high as third, the Greyhounds host Dutchtown on Friday. BRAD HARRISON/Staff

    Since winning the Morris Bank Holiday Classic on Dec. 21, the Greyhounds have had ample time to bask on their tournament win and also rest up. The layoff ends Friday with the heat of region play having its collective wick turned up with the Dutchtown visiting the Greyhounds.

    That game will come after two Greyhounds – Daethan Harris and Geo Wade – have been able to heal up from minor injuries, getting Jones County, ranked as high as third in one poll, ready to go.

    “It was a nice rest; it’s been good for us,” Greyhounds head coach Buck Harris said. “It’s definitely needed to get some guys back healthy.”

    The stakes could not be much higher as the Bulldogs, unbeaten with a 4-0 region record, are tied for first in the region with Eagles Landing. As the week began, the Greyhounds were third in the region, tied for third with Union Grove with 3-2 region records and one game in front of Warner Robins.

    Dutchtown, however, has yet to face Eagles Landing. In a testament to the parity of the Greyhounds region, one online ranking, Cam Rickers Hoops, rates Jones County, Dutchtown and Eagles Landing within its top six GHSA Class AAAAA teams.

    “Dutchtown is still Dutchtown. They’ve got good players on the inside and good guards. They have a new coach and are doing some different things,” Harris said. “After playing teams like Grovetown, hopefully that helps us be up for the test. They’re a little bit different than Grovetown, but still athletic and tough. We’ll have to rebound and take care of the ball.”

    In the end, all a team has to do is advance to the next month’s region tournament semifinals to advance to the state playoffs. But a higher finish makes a team’s draw better, magnifying the importance of the coming weeks. Following this Friday, matchups against Union Grove on the road Jan. 13 and at home Jan. 20 against Locust Grove await. Then, two even larger matchups roll in with Jan. 24 and Jan. 27 home games against Eagles Landing and Warner Robins, the two teams responsible for JCHS region losses earlier in the season.

    That Warner Robins game will precede a pair of road games at Ola and Dutchtown to end the regular season, making it even more of a key game for the Hounds in a chase among the region’s leaders.