The Joe Greene Tip-Off Tournament began Tuesday evening, pitting the Bradwell Tigers against the Groves Rebels. The girls squad earned a victory, but the boys lost.
Lady Tigers 76 Groves 34
Lady Tiger coach Faye Baker said the girls worked on floor transitions during their 76-34 win.
"We want to play an up tempo game and I thought we were able to get some easy baskets in transition by simply being energetic and running on both sides of the floor," she said. "Our press was effective again. We were able to create some turnovers that we converted into easy baskets."
But, the coach added, it’s still early and the team has a few wrinkles to iron out.
"We still need work on our defense because we are still committing too many fouls and putting the teams in a bonus entirely too early," Baker said.
She said the girls committed too many fouls in the first half.
"As a whole, it was a solid effort," she said. "If we can just put all four quarters together like we did that second half, I would be pleased."
The Lady Tigers were set to play Liberty’s Lady Panthers at 4 p.m. Wednesday.
Baker said the game probably means more to the athletes than it does the coaches since it’s for the county’s bragging rights.
"I know our kids are very excited about it and the Liberty kids are excited about it, so I know it’s going to be a lot of nervous energy because of the excitement," she said. "We just want to go out and settle down. Play like we normally play any other opponent. We want to execute on both ends of the floor. My mindset is this is just another game. We still need to go out and do the things we do and get better at it."
Tigers 39, Groves 66
After defeating Long County in the last preseason game Friday, the Tigers suffered a 66-39 loss at the season opener Tuesday against Groves.
Tiger coach Pete Woodard said based on Tuesday’s performance, he is looking to play the guys who are willing and hungry for wins.
"We had some guys who were not giving us 100 percent last night," he said. "The ones we were expecting to step up didn’t, and some of the younger guys showed they wanted to play and they were hungry, so that is one adjustment I’ll be making."
As for the game against Liberty set for 7 p.m. Wednesday, Woodard said he didn’t think he would need to make many adjustments.
"This is a big game and a local rivalry and I think the game itself is going to bring about a lot of intensity from both teams," he said.
Against Long County, Woodard said he concentrated on double-teaming Long County’s Justin Boyd. However, he said he would need to adjust his defensive scheme to face the Panthers.
"With Rion Brown and Jordan McRae, you know you can only double-team one man. You leave the other one open, he is going to hurt you," he said. "They complement each other and they make a good combination ... We are going to have to use a different approach."
The results from Wednesday’s Liberty vs. Bradwell game were not available due to early Thanksgiving deadlines. The Courier will publish the results and stories in Sunday’s paper.