MORGAN COUNTY
The Morgan County girls’ basketball team (17-5. 6-2 Region 4-AAA) picked up two league wins last week against the Academy of Richmond County (60-31) and Salem (45-42).
The Lady Dogs entered the week riding a four-game winning streak, dating back to Jan. 17. However, that was snapped on Tuesday with a 54-46 loss to Hephzibah on Tuesday night.
Last week, Morgan County easily defeated ARC before pulling a close win over Salem.
The Lady Dogs defeated the Lady Seminoles 56-13 three weeks ago; however, the Lady Seminoles came to play on Friday night, but Morgan County was able to squeak out a three-point win.
Sophomore forward Jaden Young led the way with 17 points on 6-of-17 shooting. She also shot 40 percent from beyond the 3-point line with five rebounds, five assists and one steal.
Another sophomore, Kymora Smith, added 14 points, and five rebounds, three of them being offensive boards. She also recorded three steals and three assists against Salem on Friday. Senior forward Destiny Hunter also contributed seven points and a team-high 11 rebounds.
“We were able to hold our own,” head coach Milfred Franklin said. “It got tight but we pulled it out.”
Morgan County then moved on to a road matchup with Hephzibah on Tuesday. The Lady Rebels were able to avenge a loss from a few weeks ago and knock off the Lady Dogs by nine points.
Hephzibah’s win moved it into a two-way tie with Morgan County for second place in the region standings. The Lady Dogs are now set to face Cross Creek (18-4, 8-0 Region 4-AAA)on Friday.
The Lady Razorbacks won the last meeting in convincing fashion. So, Morgan County is looking to get revenge in a game that could factor into first place in the Region 4-AAA standings.
Cross Creek is currently the No. 7 team in Class AAA, according to SandysSpiel.com’s rankings. The Lady Razorbacks have had Morgan County’s number ever since joining the same region.
The Lady Dogs haven’t beaten Cross Creek since that happened back in the 2020-21 season.
“We really lost our mental focus and we got a little frustrated,” Franklin said of the last game against Cross Creek. “That frustration led to us not putting forth the best effort towards the next possession because it kept dragging on and on. They didn’t move on to the next play, so it was kind of a snowball effect for them on the court and the whole team.”
Morgan County will hope to correct those mistakes against the Lady Razorbacks this time around, and bounce back after an unexpected loss to Hephzibah earlier this week.
Cross Creek had a trio of juniors - Michaela Bogans, Tahjae Hawes, and Alaya Henry - who scored in the double-digits during its Jan. 17 meeting against Morgan County. The Lady Dogs will have to contain them if they want a chance at placing first in Region 4-AAA.
Morgan County played well in the first half of the last matchup, although Cross Creek was able to exploit the Lady Dogs’ inexperience and take advantage of that in the second half.
Franklin’s squad only has one senior, Destiny Hunter, who will be honored on Friday for Senior Night. So, the first-year head coach will look to Hunter and younger players to lead.
“At this point, we really just pay more attention to details and how we played certain teams the first time,” Franklin said. “I showed the girls (on film) what mistakes they did and also the things they did well. And what we can capitalize on facing a team a second time, but our main focus right now is the attention to detail a whole lot more than Xs and Os.”