Long playoff drought is over

Armuchee’s boys basketball team will be in the state playoffs this season for the first time, ending a drought that dates to the school’s opening in 1938.

Armuchee (10-15) entered the Region 7-AA tournament this week as the No. 6 seed with only two region victories, but it defeated third-seeded Chattooga 66-64 to earn one of the region’s four state playoff berths.

Armuchee’s girls basketball teams have made the state playoffs 21 times, the first in 1954, but the boys had never gone.

“Armuchee was the last long holdout,” said Becky Taylor, whose Georgia Basketball Project has recorded state-tournament results from its inception in 1922. “I can’t think of any other long-established school (like Armuchee) that has yet to make an appearance.”

Armuchee next plays in the region semifinals Friday against second-seeded Coosa.

Region tournaments are taking place in 48 regions this week. Here are some other early highlights:

Hapeville Charter’s girls team, which finished 1-19 last season, is going to the state playoffs at the expense of Greater Atlanta Christian, which will miss the playoffs for the first time since 2000. Hapeville (11-14) beat GAC 52-32 in the Region 6-AA tournament at Holy Innocents’. Hapeville had lost both regular-season games to GAC.

GAC’s boys, the twotime defending AA champions, are back in the state playoffs for the eighth consecutive season after surviving a scare against sixth-seed Wesleyan on Tuesday in the 6-AA tournament. The Spartans entered as the three seed and narrowly held off the Wolves with a 64-61 overtime victory to secure a berth. The Spartans (178) will face No. 2 seed Holy Innocents’ in the semifinals Thursday.

Collins Hills’ boys won’t make the state playoffs despite a 15-2 start, and North Gwinnett will make the playoffs despite a 6-11 start. North Gwinnett beat Collins Hill 5247 in the 7-AAAAAA tournament at Duluth on Tuesday. North Gwinnett is on a 7-1 streak. The Bulldogs were 27-4 last season and made the state quarterfinals but returned only two starters.

Columbia’s girls (1410) will miss the state playoffs for the first time since 2008. Columbia was the AAA champion in 2010 and 2012 and the AAAA champion in 2013. Columbia’s season ended Tuesday in a 32-29 loss to fourth-seeded Arabia Mountain (16-9) in the 6-AAAA tournament.

Fifth-seeded Hillgrove’s 65-47 victory against fourth-seeded North Cobb this week was only a mild upset in the 4-AAAAAA girls tournament, but it was significant because Hillgrove never has failed to make the state tournament since the school opened in 2007.

Football coaching news: Tift County coach John Reid was hired as head coach at Rome. Tift County then promoted assistant head coach Ashley Anders to replace Reid. ... Centennial hired Grayson defensive coordinator Lenny Gregory to replace coach Jeff Carlberg, who resigned after three seasons. ... Norcross offensive coordinator Steve Sims is the new head coach at Apalachee.