Peachtree Ridge girls advance to Sweet 16 for second year in a row

SUWANEE, GEORGIA – Last Wednesday’s loss to Norcross in the Region 7-AAAAAAA championship game was disappointing for the Peachtree Ridge girls basketball team, to say the least.

The Lions were out-classed by the Blue Devils in a 57-36 loss that saw them struggle to get anything going for much of the game. Looking to redeem themselves at home against Mill Creek in the first round of the 7A state playoffs on Tuesday, they did just that.

Behind a big second quarter, the Lions built a large halftime lead and never looked back en route to a 56-43 win to advance to the second round of the playoffs for the second year in a row.

The win also gives head coach Ulysses Haynes his first playoff victory at the helm after he took over the program this season.

“We didn’t play well against Norcross, so it was good to get a good win tonight,” Haynes said. “We played really good defense. We’re just going to go back to work and hopefully, we can get another win in the second round.”

Clinging to a two-point lead early in the second quarter, the Lions used a 17-2 run to get into halftime leading by 17 points.

Sanaa Tripp (19 points) and Aaliyah Hunt (13 points) combined to score 10 of the Lions’ 17 points during that second-quarter run that spanned the final 5:53.

“It was really nice,” Haynes said. “I really enjoyed that. We kept them scoreless and that’s the thing. I tell people all the time that I’m not really worried about scoring points. I just don’t want the other team to score. When we lock in on defense, I think we can play with anybody.”

Tuesday night’s win for the Lions was a game of runs.

The Hawks held a 3-0 lead early on, but the Lions closed out the first quarter on an 11-2 run. Hunt was held to just two points in the first quarter after picking up two quick fouls, but the Lions got big minutes from Kalyce Williams, who scored four points.

Heading into the second quarter, the Hawks used a 5-1 run to cut the Lions’ lead to two, 12-10. That was the last time the Hawks were within striking distance for the game.

In a four-minute span, the Lions scored 12 points and held the Hawks scoreless. The Hawks were finally able to snap a 17-0 run by the Lions when Isabella Ragone knocked down a pair of free throws with 11 seconds left in the quarter.

Peachtree Ridge went into halftime leading 29-12.

The disastrous second quarter by the Hawks proved costly. They matched the Lions shot for shot in the third quarter and out-scored them by four in the fourth quarter. But the 17-point deficit was too much to overcome in the end.

With the win, the Lions will now gear up for a rematch of last year’s first-round playoff game against South Forsyth. The Lions knocked off the War Eagles 49-41 on the road last season and they will have to do it again if they want to advance to the quarterfinals.

The War Eagles, who won Region 6, defeated Wheeler 55-30 Tuesday night to advance to the second round.