GIRLS HOOPS
WARNER ROBINS - The bottom line is simple this time of year in basketball.
Win and advance. After dropping the regular-season finale to Dutchtown 53-47 on the road Friday, the Lady Greyhounds won the game that mattered most between the two teams, 39-31, in the first round of Monday’s region tournament held at Warner Robins High School.
“We’re in state,” Lady Greyhounds head coach ChoRhonda Gwaltney-Harris said. “Now you have two more weeks to play, regardless.”
JCHS, the fourth seed in the tournament, plays top-seeded Warner Robins at 7 p.m. Thursday in the tournament semifinals. Regardless, Jones County will advance once again to the state tournament. Even if the Lady Hounds lose on Thursday, they can finish as high as third with a win in Friday’s thirdplace game, thus improving their seeding for the state tournament.
Jones County, which last Tuesday routed Ola 52-34, led 13-9 at the half, riding the wave of a strong defensive start in which the Bulldogs were held to two first-quarter points. The Lady Greyhounds took firm control in the third, going up 33-20 by both driving to the basket and converting shots from the outside. In the third quarter alone, both Aubrey Norris and Shania Bryant had four points apiece and Carlie Skinner drained two three-pointers. For the game, Skinner led Jones County with eight points.
Every bit of that lead would be needed in the final eight minutes, as Dutchtown got within six points with less than two minutes to play but no closer.
“We turned it over a bit and got shaky, but we managed to hold on and pull it out. That’s all that counts,” Gwaltney-Harris said.
It was a revenge of sorts against Dutchtown, who won Friday. That contest, however, was on the road, and with the region tourney on a neutral court far away from Henry County, most of that edge was gone, and JCHS seized the opportunity.
“We were in their place.
They shot 22 free throws and we shot six. They were 60 percent from the three-point line, and it was their senior night,” Gwaltney-Harris said. “We were betting on them not shooting that well again and knew they wouldn’t have that same advantage.”
