The Cedar Shoals High School and Clarke Central High School basketball will play each other on Dec. 10 and Jan. 21, 2017. the first game, on Dec. 10, will be at Cedar Shoals High School”There are some upcoming leaders like Dwon Smith and Nick Johnson and Martavius Darden. They turned into leaders last year and the seniors here last year were leaders, but the team this year is better than the team we had last year,” Clarke Central High School varsity basketball center Quamontae Monfort said. Photo by Julie Alpaugh
By HANNAH GALE – Print Sports Editor
By ALEX ROBINSON – Staff Writer
Cross-town rivals Cedar Shoals High School and Clarke Central High School basketball teams will face off on Dec. 10 and Jan. 21, 2017.
To start the 2016-17 season, both Clarke County School District high school basketball teams found themselves in new places, as they landed in Region 8-AAAAA with bigger schools, such as Buford, Johnson and Walnut Grove High Schools.
However, games between cross-town rivals, Clarke Central High School and Cedar Shoals High School have a historic edge as the team’s have played against each other since the 1970’s. Most recently, the Gladiators posted two double-digit losses against the Jaguars during the 2015-16 varsity boys basketball season and look to rebound.
“The Cedar game is always big. You never want to lose to your rival,” CCHS head basketball coach Andre McIntyre said.
Entering the game on Dec. 10, the Gladiators have amassed five wins versus one loss, and McIntyre is pleased with what he has seen so far.
“We have the capabilities to be an outstanding defensive team. This team is very unselfish, we do a good of sharing the basketball and looking for teammates,” McIntyre said. “This team is well-balanced with some good outside shooter and athletic big men.”
While the Gladiators graduated seven players, the Jaguars also lost key players, most notably Jerry Mitchell, Greg Smith and Chris Gresham, but have new leaders on the team according to CSHS head boys varsity basketball coach L’Dreco Thomas.
“They’re going to be hard to replace, but we also have a good core of seniors coming back. We feel good about them,” Thomas said.
CSHS and CCHS are both hard at work preparing not only for their rival games, but for the rest of the season as well.
“Bottom line, it’s a region game. We want to win it because we want to put ourselves in a better shape in the region,” Thomas said. “Of course there’s extra when it’s your rival, but at the end of the day you want to win it because it’s a regional.”
