The top-ranked Morgan County boys team won 20 games to start the season before dropping a closely contested matchup to Class AAAAAAA No. 3 Newton. The powerhouse Newton program, led by junior star Ashton Hagans, held off Morgan 65-61 Jan. 20.
The Bulldogs recovered to defeat Hart County 56-38, and with just three games left in the regular season, Morgan has a commanding 7-0 lead in Region 8-AAA. The nearest competitor? Hart County at 4-3.
But the Bulldogs are right where they want to be. Morgan County lost five games last season before going on a 13-game winning streak to close the season. Its final loss was against Pace County in the championship game.
This week, Morgan will travel to East Jackson (3-4) Friday . The 13-9 Eagles have dropped two consecutive games and will have to play a flawless game to challenge the Bulldogs.
Here are some other boys games worth noting:
-- No. 2 Johnson-Savannah (18-2, 10-0) will travel 4.1 miles across Savannah to take on rival Beach (8-13, 5-6). With a victory, Johnson will take control of Savannah after defeating Jenkins 67-60 Jan. 23.
-- No. 3 Jenkins (17-4, 9-2) will host local rival Savannah with hopes of getting back on track after losing to No. 2 Johnson. Before losing to Johnson on Jan. 23, Jenkins had not lost a game since a Dec. 28 game against Hillcrest from Alabama.
-- No. 4 Greater Atlanta Christian (17-3, 8-1) may have three losses, but you'd have to look back to mid-December to find them. Since falling to Trinity Christian on Dec. 19 , the Spartans have won 10 in a row, including a 64-51 victory against East Hall on Tuesday . The Spartans dropped the first game against East Hall, 88-74, Dec. 15 , and winning the rematch pushed GAC up in the Region 7 standings.
Girls
-- No. 1 GAC (16-3, 9-0) has not let up since the holiday tournaments, winning seven consecutive games and taking a commanding lead in the Region 7 race. Its closest competitor, East Hall, is 5-3 in region play. The Lady Spartans will host Lumpkin County (8-11, 2-7) Friday . The Lady Indians will have to execute flawlessly to upset GAC.
-- No. 2 Beach (19-1, 10-0) will host crosstown rival and ninth-ranked Johnson-Savannah (13-4, 9-1) in a crucial Region 3 battle. Beach lost to Johnson. 48-43, Dec. 19 , and the rematch should be closely contested. Tatiayanna Morris and Jabreika Bass lead the Lady Bulldogs with 10 points per game. Johnson's Sy'Marieona Williams is averaging 18.4 points per game. J'Mya Cutter adds 12.2 points per game. Johnson could very likely pull off the upset.
-- No. 3 Franklin County (22-0, 7-0) has not been beaten and holds a lead over Hart County (5-1) in the Region 8 standings. Franklin has Monroe Area on Friday before facing East Jackson and Hart County to close the regular season. The Lady Lions defeated Monroe Area, 61-19, Jan. 9, Hart County, 64-46, Jan. 12 and East Jackson, 67-20, Jan. 16.
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