Both Josey, Hephzibah have hurdles

Josey's boys team believes 2005 could be special. Hephzibah's girls team feels the same. Each squad is a perfect 28-0 so far this season.

Josey held the ranking as the top team in the Class AA earlier this year. Hephzibah's Lady Rebels have been the top-ranked team in Class AAA for the past month. Each is a serious contender for a state championship.

But the hard part lies ahead.

East Hall, Manchester, Coosa, Cross Keys and East Laurens all have strong enough teams to stand in Josey's way.

"There are a few teams in Class AA good enough to be in the mix in Class AAA," East Laurens coach Jimmy Williams said. "These playoffs should be very dramatic."

East Hall (26-1) edged Josey for the top spot in this week's Gasports.com Class AA coaches' poll.

"We play pressure defense and force an up-tempo game," East Hall coach Joe Dix said. "We average about 90 points per game and give up 60. ... Our goal is four points every minute."

Nine East Hall players have state title rings from the 2003 Class AAA championship. The East Hall seniors are 112-9 as a class. Forward Kendrick Coleman is shooting 70 percent and has a 41-inch vertical jump.

"People have said that us and East Hall are mirror images," Josey coach Sam Lilly said. "Both teams like to run and press."

East Hall's loss came to Class AAAAA Centennial, when it was missing point guard Marquez Jackson, who was in Hawaii on a football recruiting visit.

"You have to call East Hall the clear favorite," Cross Keys coach William Johnson said. "They were in the finals of Class AAA last year, and everybody is back."

Johnson has seen both East Hall and Josey three times.

"The edge is to East Hall," Johnson said. "It would be a high-scoring game. I just think East Hall is more polished than Josey. No disrespect, but East Hall runs the same system in its middle and elementary schools as they do at the high school. The kids hit varsity and know the team's system backward and forward."

East Laurens (24-3) has two players over 6-foot-6-inches in height plus two players with vertical leaps above 40 inches. Cross Keys (23-5) and Chattooga (20-8) are Josey's likely hurdles to the Final Four in Macon. Barring an upset, East Hall would come in the semifinals.

The path is a little clearer for Hephzibah's girls. Josey has four Top-10 teams in its half of the bracket. There is only one team from the Class AAA top 10 in Hephzibah's half.

But it is a mighty opponent. Kendrick (26-1) is rated as the No. 3 team in Class AAA behind Hephzibah and Avondale despite topping 90 points eight times. Kendrick's loss was to Central High from Alabama.

Kendrick has won by margins of 136-25, 131-5, 122-10, 111-14, 102-24 and 86-2.

"Those scores are impressive no matter who you are playing," Avondale coach Marcus Searcy said. "Hephzibah and Kendrick are two teams, if I am not mistaken, that dropped down to AAA who did very well in AAAA. Those two with their records and scores have to be seen as the co-favorites."

Avondale's lineup has seven sophomores among its nine-player rotation. Two seniors start in the frontcourt. The rest of the Top 10 makes up its half of the bracket.

"We miss out on two of the big guns but we also have a power in Johnson-Gainesville," Searcy said. "Don't forget them. They are the 7-AAA region champ. And if you ask any coach, that region is unofficially where they play the best girls high school basketball in the state."