The Long County Blue Tide basketball teams are less than ten games away from the end of the regular season and they are both in the thick of the race for the Region 3-AAA titles.
On Friday, January 16, they hosted the Southeast Bulloch Yellow Jackets and were looking to not overlook the weaker region opponent.
The teams took care of business as both went on to dominant wins, with the girls winning 64-15 and the boys taking a 74-30 victory.
The girls jumped out to a 10-0 lead, keeping the Lady Jackets off the board for the first 5:25 of the game. They led 14-3 at the end of the first and then only allowed one made shot in the entire first half, as the Jackets finally made a bucket at 2:10 left in the half.
The Lady Tide led 35-6 at the half as they held the Jackets to just 1-of-17 from the field in the half. Amire Saunders led the way in the first half with eight points and five steals while Khloe Morris was already pushing a double-double with six points and five rebounds.
Their dominance continued in the second half as they led 46-15 going in the fourth quarter and held the Jackets scoreless in the fourth.
Every player scored for the Tide while Saunders led with 15 points and 3-of-5 from 3-point range. Zae Buckner added 12 points and Morris had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
With the win, the Lady Tide move to 9-6 and 3-3 in region play.
The boys, even being shorthanded on the bench due to some sicknesses, led 22-10 at the end of the first after some tough inside play by Jeremy Rollins and James Jackson.
They held the Jackets to just two points in the second quarter as they led 43-12.
It took the Jackets nearly four minutes to score in the third quarter as they Tide built a 41-point lead. That lead held through the quarter as they were up 61-23 going into the fourth.
The Tide moved to 14-3 and 6-0 in region play. Jy’son Mallard led with 25 points, Zyi Holt added 14 and Rollins had a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
The teams will be on the road for the next four games as they travelled to Islands on Tuesday, Liberty County on Friday, Ware County on Saturday and Groves on Tuesday, January 27.