Road to State: 1st round basketball playoff matchups for teams from the Greater Savannah area

The state basketball playoffs start throughout Georgia this week, and a number of Savannah area teams are looking to make their mark in the postseason.

On the boys side, Savannah High won the Region 3-A Division I title with a win over Woodville-Tompkins, and both teams will host in the first-round.

New Hampstead took the Region 3-4A crown with a win over rival Benedictine, and both squads host games Wednesday. Savannah Country Day is coming off its underdog run to the Region 3-3A crown, and the Hornets and runner-up Johnson are set to host games Wednesday.

On the girls side, Region 3-3A champion Calvary Day will host a first-round playoff game, as will runnerup Savannah Country Day. Bryan County enters the Class A Division I playoffs as a region champion also hosting a first-round game.

Here are the playoff matchups for GHSA, GIAA, SCISA and GAPPS teams this week.

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BOYS

Class 5A

No. 3 Lithonia (10-16) at No. 2 Bradwell Institute (21-6), Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 5:30 p.m.

Bradwell senior Tahshaun Frasier, who has signed with Columbus State, looks to lead the Tigers into the second round.

Class 4A

No. 4 Westside-Macon (18-10) at No. 1 New Hampstead (21-5), Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 5:30 p.m.

New Hampstead is coming off a memorable battle where the Phoenix beat Benedictine for the third time this season in the Region 3-4A title game. A balanced, deep squad features freshman point guard AJ Williams and junior sharp-shooter Ra'Shawn Truell. Westside Macon is led by junior shooting guard Josh Harden, who is averaging 16 points and 8.1 rebounds per game.

No. 3 Griffin (15-12) at No. 2 Benedictine (14-7), Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 5:30 p.m.

Benedictine, which made its first trip to the Final Four since 1959 last season, is looking to make another run behind the play of junior star Caleb Jones, who is averaging 28.4 points per game -- the best in the GHSA, according to Maxpreps.com.

Class 3A

No. 4 Mary Persons (6-22) at No. 1 Savannah Country Day (14-15), Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 6:30 p.m.

Savannah Country Day, coming off an underdog run to the Region 3-3A crown as a No. 7 seed, is on fire behind the play of senior guard Robert Spaulding Jr. and freshman Rudy Anderson. The Hornets are poised to reach the Sweet 16 as they play in the tail end of a double header with the Hornet girls squad leading off on Wednesday night.

No. 3 Jackson (8-19) at No. 2 Johnson (16-11), Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 6:30 p.m.

Johnson will be looking to get back on track after a sluggish first half cost the Atom Smashers in a 60-52 loss to Savannah Country Day in the Region 3-3A finals. With Region Player of the Year Joshua Quarterman leading the way, look for the Atom Smashers to come on strong.

No. 4 Calvary Day (9-17) at No. 1 Peach County (14-12), Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 6:30 p.m.

Calvary is a team that is much better than its record shows. Senior guard CJ Gaines is an All-Region 3-3A pick, and the Cavs have plenty of size with 6-foot-10 Kuol Deng and 6-8 Chol Kiir. Peach County is led by sophmore guard Cam Cherry, who is averaging 15.1 points per game.

Class 2A

No. 4 Windsor Forest (14-12) at No. 1 Spencer (23-3), Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 7 p.m.

Windsor Forest is balanced with four players averaging in double figures for points in Landon Page (1.8 ppg), Ryheim Manning (13.6), Troy Smith (10.4) and Sean Cabellero (10.3). They'll have a big challenge on the road against a Spencer squad that won the Region 2-2A title.

Class A Division I

No. 4 Dublin (12-15) at No. 1 Savannah (19-8), Wednesday, Feb. 21, Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 6:30 p.m.

Savannah High, under first-year head coach George Brown, beat Woodville in a close one to win the Region 3A Division I crown. The Blue Jackets are led by Region Player of the Year Maki Joyner, a junior guard, along with senior star Jermaine Edwards and 6-foot-8 junior Deshawn Davis, the two-time Region Defensive Player of the Year.

No. 3 Bleckley County (19-8) at No. 2 Woodville-Tompkins (22-4), Wednesday, Feb. 21, Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 6:30 p.m.

Veteran coach Travis Priddy, in his first year leading the program, has Woodville playing excellent team basketball. Jonathon Pickering, Naheim Williams, Joey Bell and Tyler Grant were all first-team All-Region 3A Division I picks for the Wolverines.

No. 3 Bryan County (17-10) at No. 2 East Laurens (20-4), Wednesday, Feb. 21, Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 6:30 p.m.

Bryan County, led by juniors Elijah Mincey and Chris Winfree, both first-team All-Region 3-A Division I selections, is looking to advance with an upset on the road.

GIAA Class 3A

Two-time defending champion St. Andrew's has a bye in the first round of the playoffs.

GIAA Class A

Grace Christian Academy (7-14) at Memorial Day (11-8), Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 6 p.m.

Memorial Day, which won the GIAA Class A state crown last year, is led by 6-8 senior Matas Aidietis.

SCISA 2A

Bethesda (19-6) vs. Calhoun Academy (14-12) at Wilson Hall in Sumter, S.C. on Tuesday, Feb. 20, at 4:30 p.m.

Bethesda, under first-year coach Clyde Wormley, is led by senior Ashton Wright (17.7 points per game), senior Jacari McKay (14.1 ppg) and junior Israel Wright (10.4 ppg).

GAPPS State Semifinals

The Habersham School (17-8) vs. Horizon Christian (17-11), Thursday, Feb. 22 at 6 p.m. at Gordon College

Senior Luke Rowland leads Habersham with 13.5 points and 5.3 rebounds per contest.

GIRLS

Class 7A

No. 4 Richmond Hill (17-11) at No. 1 Grayson (27-0), Tuesday, Feb. 20 at 5 p.m.

Richmond Hill has been solid all year behind the play of May Inyang, Jada Brown and MaKiyah Matthews. Now they face an undefeated Grayson squad ranked No. 1 in the state.

Class 6A

No. 4 South Effingham (9-19) at No. 1 Woodward Academy (22-5), Tuesday, Feb. 20 at 5 p.m.

The Mustangs are led by senior Elena Hairston, who is averaging 15 points, seven rebounds and 4.9 assists per game. Woodward has four players averaging more than eight points per game led by junior Kameron Herring at 15.4 points per game.

Class 5A

No. 3 Bradwell Institute (22-5) at No. 2 Decatur (9-12), Tuesday, Feb. 20 at 5:30 p.m.

Bradwell has been hit hard by injuries this season, but junior guard Parris Parham is still in the mix -- leading the Tigers with 18.8 points and 8.7 rebounds per game.

No. 4 Jenkins (9-16) at No. 1 Arabia Mountain (24-2), Tuesday, Feb. 20 at 5 p.m.

Sophomore Aniyah Browner leads Jenkins with 11.5 points per game. Freshman Shanya Heath leads Arabia Mountain with 21.7 points, 5.4 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 4.9 steals per game.

Class 4A

No. 3 New Hampstead (14-9) at No. 2 Griffin (18-10), Tuesday, Feb. 20 at 5:30 p.m.

New Hampstead has some star power in junior Gianna Brown and senior A'Kera Jackson, who have both had 40 point games this season.

Class 3A

No. 4 Pike County (9-14) at No. 1 Calvary Day (20-5), Tuesday, Feb. 20, 5 p.m.

Calvary, under first-year head coach Daniel Jackson, enters the playoffs on a winning note after breaking through to beat Savannah Country Day for the Region 3-3A title after two previous losses. Junior Destini Gooddine is averaging 18 points per game and was named the Region 3-3A Co-Player of the Year. Her classmate, Bre Jones, is a leader on both ends of the court and averages 12.8 points. Zora Geiger is another top contributor with 12.2 points and 8.3 rebounds per game.

No. 3 Upson-Lee (10-15) at No. 2 Savannah Country Day (19-6), Wednesday, Feb. 21, 5 p.m.

SCD is known for its heady, disciplined play under head coach Kenny Conroy. Senior guard Stella Oelschig was named the Region 3-3A Player of the Year and AC Davis is another pivotal player on a squad known for its team-first style of play.

No. 3 Beach (14-15) at No. 2 Peach County (16-7), Tuesday, Feb. 20 at 5:30 p.m.

Mariah Reid has emerged as one of the top freshmen in the state for Beach as the athletic guard is averaging 22.1 points per game.

No. 4 Liberty County (10-15) at No. 1 Mary Persons (22-5), TBA

Senior Ka'Mora Hollis leads Liberty County with 9.1 points and 4.9 rebounds per game.

Class A Division I

No. 4 Bleckley County (15-12) at No. 1 Bryan County (24-3), Tuesday, Feb. 20, 6 p.m.

Bryan County rides a nine-game win streak into the playoffs. Senior Kayley Wedlow was named the Region 3A Division I Player of the Year and is averaging 17.3 points per game. Ashanti Brown, Jasmine Mikell and Elizabeth Harvey were also first-team all-region selections for BC.

No. 4 Savannah (11-13) at No. 1 Swainsboro (17-6), Tuesday, Feb. 20 at 4:30 p.m.

Savannah High is on the road looking for a big upset over Swainsboro, ranked No. 6 in the state among Class A Division I teams by Sandysspiel.com. Senior Ernajah Mallard was recently named the Region 3A Division I Defensive Player of the Year, while Tania Bryant was a first-team pick.

GAPPS State Semifinals

Habersham School (17-11) vs. Horizon Christian (9-8), Thursday, Feb. 22 at 2 p.m. at Gordon State

The Patriots are led by Myla Shippy, an eighth grader who is averaging 10.3 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game.

Dennis Knight covers sports for the Savannah Morning News. Contact him at Dknight@savannahnow.com. Twitter: @DennisKnightSMN

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: See how Savannah area basketball teams match up in first round of playoffs