On the last full week of the regular season, teams throughout the county were fighting for seeding in the upcoming region tournament.

Friday night, North Paulding High School took the road to play county rival South Paulding on Senior Night.

Before the game, 10 seniors were recognized on both the boys and girls teams: Brandi Jones, Meghan Brown, Porsha Martin, Stormey Smith, Josh Patton, Mark Johnson, Dan Smith, Donovan Fleming, Cody Hunt and Leonard Adger.

South Paulding came back late, winning 82-74.

From the start, the game was close. The teams traded baskets throughout the first quarter.

A big block by senior Dan Smith and a three-pointer by Mark Johnson, boosted the Spartans to an early 14-12 first-quarter lead.

North Paulding came back as the second quarter began, tying the game, and the two teams continued the heated battle, ending the half with SPHS up 37-35.

The third quarter saw great play on both sides of the ball, with Austin Lee leading the Wolfpack by hitting some very acrobatic shots; however, the Spartans came out on top 54-51.

South Paulding’s pressure finally got to North Paulding, causing the Wolfpack some costly turnovers that resulted in layups by Jared Bohlander and Donovan Fleming.

Bohlander boosted South Paulding in the fourth quarter, hitting three 3-point shots to help seal the game.

Austin Lee of North Paulding led all scorers with 19, while teammate Morgan Mega was close behind with 16.

The Spartans had three players with a double-double. Donovan Fleming had 17 points, 11 rebounds, nine assists and six steals. Tony Daniel had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Dan Smith had 10 points and 11 rebounds.

Jared Bohlander helped the Spartans with 15 points off the bench.

Head Coach Jamie Watkins attempted to sum up the game and season.

“I love coaching these boys. They work hard and are very unselfish,” he said.

South Paulding also played Osborne on Feb. 2, losing 64-63.

Josh Patton, who was 5-of-7 from the three-point line, and Donovan Fleming had 17; however, the Cardinals were able to hit a three-point shot with :07 left for the win.

The Spartans moved to 12-12 on the season and 7-6 in the region.

Hiram Hornets busy

The Hiram Hornets were also in action this week, playing four games.

On Feb. 2, the Hornets suffered a 78-77 loss to Dalton. Shaun Monk led the Hornets with 13 points, followed by Marcus Brown and Mario Roland with 12 points each.

The Hornets came back Feb. 3 and played Murray County, winning big 83-50. Marcus Brown contributed 22 points in the win, followed by Shaun Monk with 15.

Friday was Senior Night for the Hornets against Allatoona. Marcus Brown had 19 points and seven rebounds. Jared Spencer also played big with 14 rebounds.

Raider hoop action

The East Paulding boys played Harrison, losing 76-60 Feb. 2.

Paulding County was in action against Hillgrove Feb. 2, losing 66-48.

The South Paulding girls played two big region opponents last week.

The girls took on the Osborne Lady Cardinals Feb. 2, losing 42-31. Porsha Martin and Stormy Smith each had 11 points..

The Lady Spartans took the floor Friday against the North Paulding Wolfpack, winning big 50-16. Martin scored 17 points, with nine rebounds, six steals and three assists. Hannah Ballingall had 11 points, followed by Smith with nine points, seven steals and four assists.

Before the game, Martin was honored as the first player in South Paulding history to score 1,000 points in her career and pull down 500 rebounds.

The Lady Spartans are now 13-11 this season and 5-7 in the region.

The East Paulding Lady Raiders suffered a 45-26 loss to the Harrison Lady Hoyas Feb. 2.

The Lady Patriots of Paulding County played the Hillgrove Lady Hawks Feb. 2, losing 60-38.



Hoop

Schedule

Friday

Marietta at East Paulding

Region Tournament 7A-AAAA

Saturday

Region 7A-AAAA tournament

Note: Region tourneys run all next week.