Northeast brings hunger and experience to quarterfinal showdown

By Michael A. Lough

The Sports Report

centralgasports@gmail.com

          The schedule has returned to closer to normal, and Northeast head coach Kevin Grooms likes that.

          The Raiders were inconsistent in their second-round win over Hephzibah, a bit of which Grooms chalked up to the postseason schedule.

          “All this time in between games,” Grooms said. “It’s too much down time in between games. You can’t let them inconsistency going. We hadn’t played in, what, seven days?

          “To pick it up now is a little different.”

          The Raiders beat Washington County for the Region 3-AA title on Feb. 8, topped Toombs County in the first-round game on Feb. 15, and then got past Hephzibah by 12 on Feb. 21.

          Six days later, another game, quite the change from two games a week within three days or three games in five days.

          The Raiders take on Therrell at Southwest Thursday at 7 p.m. in a AA quarterfinal with the winner advancing to Georgia College on Saturday.

          “I think we match up well,” Grooms said. “They’re somewhat like the team we just played.”

          Northeast struggled to put Hephzibah away – thanks in part to a 6-for-13 fourth quarter from the line - before winning 64-52 last week, but didn’t have to change an abundance of preparation for the Region 6 runner-up.

          “(Hephzibah) is a different team than we’re used to playing in our region,” Grooms said. “So we knew we had to stretch our defense out a little bit because they like to shoot jump shots, a lot of 3s.”

          Therrell is 22-7 under second-year head coach Eddie Johnson, in his second stint at the Atlanta school. The Panthers went 13-1 in Region 6. A year ago, they reached this round and lost 73-52 at home to Glenn Hills, which had eliminated Northeast 80-47 in the first round.

          A familiar week dealing with a similar scouting report should be a nice boost for a veteran Raiders team on a five-game winning streak eyeing its first semifinal spot since 1987 with the most wins in more than a decade.

          “In eight years at Northeast, as a team, this is the best team we’ve had,” Grooms said. “We’ve had good individual players, but as a whole team, this is the best whole team we’ve ever had.”

          The Raiders have six seniors: Kendall Green, Darius Dunn, Ty’ree Gilbert, Isaiah Hilson, Reggie Williams, and Te’Yoan Hill.

          In the win over Hephzibah, the trio of Green, Gilbert, and Dunn teamed for 49 of the Raiders’ 64 points, another 11 coming from junior Camrone Cherry.

          “Our seniors, they only had three wins their first year,” Grooms said. “They’re just persevering.”