Regular season play winding down, area tournaments next
Area play concluded for high school basketball teams last week, and entering the final week of the regular season, here is a status update on the teams along the 280 corridor.
SPAIN PARK
The Jag boys came up short in a winner-take-all matchup against Mountain Brook last Friday, falling 83-43. Spain Park concluded the Class 7A, Area 6 slate with a 4-2 mark and the No. 2 seed in the area tournament, which will be contested at Mountain Brook next week. The Jags will take on No. 3 seed Huffman in the opening round. The two teams split in the regular season.
The Lady Jags prevailed with a 60-40 victory over Mountain Brook on Friday to finish off a perfect 6-0 area slate. That performance earned them the right to host the girls portion of the Area 6 tournament next week. They will face Mountain Brook once again in the opening round, as the Spartans finished 1-5 in area play.
CHELSEA
Despite slightly different roads to reach the destination, both Chelsea teams are in the same position. Win or go home.
The boys team is in a difficult position, as Class 6A, Area 8 also features Pelham and Helena, two of the top teams in the classification all season long. The Hornets lost all four region contests against the two teams, but all they have to do is knock off No. 2 seed Helena in the opening round of the area tournament to qualify for the sub-regional round.
The girls team finished up area play 2-2, with a pair of wins over Pelham and a pair of losses to Helena, the unbeaten area champ. Chelsea will need another victory over Pelham to advance to see Helena in the championship game and qualify for the sub-regional round as well.
OAK MOUNTAIN
The Oak Mountain boys are in the same boat as Chelsea's. The Eagles finished 0-6 in Class 7A, Area 6, an area with perennial 7A contenders Mountain Brook, Spain Park and Huffman, all three teams capable of making a run to the state championship.
Only two teams will make it out of that area tournament, though, and the Eagles will have to go through Mountain Brook to be one of them. Oak Mountain has been extremely competitive throughout the season and could make things interesting.
The Lady Eagles finished 3-3 and earned the No. 2 seed in the area, pitting them against Huffman in the opening round of the area tournament, which will be held at Spain Park next week.
BRIARWOOD
Both tournaments from Class 5A, Area 8, will be hosted at Sylacauga High School, and both Briarwood Christian School teams will face off against Shelby County in the opening round of the area tournament.
The boys earned the No. 2 seed by defeating Shelby County last week, while the Lady Lions will be the No. 3 seed.