This week’s marquee matchup in boys basketball will feature two of the top teams in our Power 15 all-class poll, the No. 7 Walton Raiders and the No. 6 Wheeler Wildcats, this Saturday. The schedule for both teams has been unyielding this season. The Raiders’ last four losses have been by a combined nine points and they recently suffered a tough loss at the hands of Centennial by a single point. Wheeler has played a tough schedule by playing many of the top teams from around the nation. However, they are sitting in first place in Subregion 6A-AAAAA with an 11-5 overall record and 5-1 region record. Walton is right on their heels at 12-5 and 4-2.
Last year, the Wildcats swept the season series by defeating the Raiders both times they played. This year may be different, as Walton has a more experienced lineup led by junior point guard Ryan Harrow and senior shooting guard Glen Rice, Jr.
Putting points on the board is not an issue for the high-flying Raiders. They have already gone over the century mark twice this year and have had games of 95, 97 and 98 points. The dynamic duo is hard to stop with Harrow scoring 24 points per game and Rice adding 17.8 a game. Wheeler has an experienced lineup of its own led by the trio of Tahj Tate, Ari Stewart and Richard Howell, all seniors. These three players make up more than half of the team’s scoring and regularly leads the team to victories.
Walton’s most recent loss puts them in an almost must-win position against Wheeler. With a win, the Raiders can stay in the region race. A Wildcats win would put them in good position to win their fourth region championship in six years.
REGION 5 SHOWDOWN
The girls game of the week is an important 5A contest on Friday night between the No. 14 Cherokee Warriors and the McEachern Indians. The Warriors defeated the Indians in their first matchup earlier this year, 57-55. This second game carries much more importance, however, as the region standings tighten up. Cherokee leads the region at 8-1, while McEachern trails in third with a 6-2 league record.
The Indians are led by high-scoring senior power forward Kyra Crosby. Crosby leads the team with 21 points per game and shoots over 50 percent from the field. The Warriors will try to slow down the talented forward by implementing their lock-down defense, which holds opponents to 45 points per game and outscores them by an average of nine points.
Cherokee is trying to repeat as region champions (albeit in Class 4A last season), while McEachern is trying to keep its championship hopes alive. Much like the first game between these two talented teams, this should be another close one.
Deighton can be reached at jdeighton@scoreatl.com.
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