GREENE COUNTY
After suffering a devastating loss to Warren County on Jan. 26, Greene County basketball has bounced back.
The Tigers (16-7, 10-3 Region 8 - Class A Division II) have won three straight heading into the final week of the regular season. They fell to Towns County on Tuesday but can bounce back against Lincoln County on Friday.
Greene County followed up the bad loss to Warren County with a victory against Washington County (69-40) the next day. Last week, the Tigers defeated Aquinas (80-40) and rival Lake Oconee Academy (52-39).
Greene County head coach Mark Wright feels his team has turned a corner in the last few games since that loss.
“That loss to Warren County was very uncharacteristic of us. We just didn’t have it going that night,” Wright said. “We’ve done a great job of bouncing back and learning from our mistakes since that game, though.”
Greene County has a chance to capture its first region championship in several years next week. The Tigers will enter the Class A Division II Region 8 tournament as one of the favorites to bring home the title this season.
Greene County’s biggest competition will be Towns County, Warren County, and Lincoln County. The race for the top spot has been tight throughout the season, with each team winning close to the same amount of games.
Wright isn’t surprised the competition for the region championship is coming down the wire.
“I think we play in the toughest region (in Class A Division II),” Wright said. “Towns and Warren have both ranked this year. Lincoln played us close. We’ve all kind of beaten up on each other as the year went on.”
Last season, Greene County went 7-18 overall and 7-9 in region competition during Wright’s first season at the helm. It’s been a complete turnaround for the Tigers, who have missed the postseason for the past five years.
Wright has relied on his players to buy in and acknowledged they’ve worked hard at flipping the script this year.
“They’ve done what they’ve needed to do. Whether it be watching film or practicing hard, I’ve gotten a lot out of them,” Wright said. “However, we still need to finish the season strong this week. Nothing is given to us.”
Greene County is still a young team, and the future is bright for the program. The Tigers have relied on players like Ryder Eschbach, Steve Miller, Laryous Burt, RJ Monford, and Jesse Broadus, all of whom are juniors.
Each of those juniors has played a pivotal role in Greene County’s success on the hardwood this season under the direction of Wright. The Tigers have senior leadership from Quay Burdette and Kamari Smith as well.
Wright highlighted how fun of a season it’s been coaching his players and also seeing them grow into better players.
“It’s been great getting to know these guys on a personal level,” Wright said. “It’s helped us bond as a team. They’ve grown so much in just a short amount of time. It’s just a positive sign to see these guys grow.”
The expectations going into this season were to just win more close games and be competitive in the region. However, Greene County’s aspirations for the year have suddenly changed to making the state playoffs.
Wright admitted that at the start of the season, he didn’t expect his team to be in the place it is at the moment.
“We have done a complete 180 in terms of this season’s success compared to last year,” Wright said. “At the start of the season, I didn’t see us where we are right now, but things have turned around quickly for us.”