By MICHAEL BOYLAN

Sports Editor

The basketball season is winding down. The regional tournaments begin a week from next Monday and all of the games up until that point will give the team's a look at possible opponents. On Tuesday, as this edition went to press, McIntosh hosted their rivals the Fayette County Tigers, Sandy Creek hosted Forest Park and Starr's Mill hosted Woodward Academy. All of those results will be published in Friday's paper.

As for games this weekend,McIntosh has their biggest game of the season to date on Friday as they play host to Griffin. McIntosh wins over both the boys and girls teams from Griffin give the Chiefs a good chance for a top seeding in the upcoming regional tournament. The Lady Chiefs (15-2) moved up two rankings in the AJC Atlanta Tip-off Club Rankings to 12th, but still trail Griffin (11-3) by a spot. The last time the Lady Chiefs and Bears met, McIntosh won by 10. The Lady Chiefs defeated East Coweta as well. Both the Indians and Bears are ranked teams and tough sub region opponents.

As for the McIntosh boys,they proved you can't go 16-2 and stay unranked for long. They vaulted to number eight in the polls this week and face the Griffin team that handed them one of their losses. The Chiefs are playing exceptionally well, firing on all cylinders and playing at home. It will definitely be worth the price of admission.

On Saturday, McIntosh hosts Sandy Creek. The Lady Chiefs should have no problem securing a win, as they usually have four or more girls scoring in double figures. Jessi Prahl has been dominating the boards lately too. She grabbed 11 in the win over Starr's Mill on Saturday. The boys should be able to handle Sandy Creek but if the Patriots rise their level of play to the level of the Chiefs, it could be a very interesting game.

The Fayette County Tigers travel to Newnan on Friday. The last time these two teams faced, the Lady Tigers walked off with a win and the boys team got beat by 10. Expect the Lady Tigers to control the pace with Becca Grizzard and Abby Snauwaert. The girls have a lot of size and speed, as well as senior leadership and good shot selection. Expect the boys to come out fired up for their rematch against Newnan. In games where the Tigers have come out hot and scored early, they won. Andrew Doggendorf has stepped up his play and William Moore is typically the catalyst on offense for this team.

Sandy Creek travels to Riverdale on Friday. When these teams met earlier in the season the Lady Patriots played well but eventually lost to the Lady Raiders. Sandy Creek has been playing better of late. If they can control the pace and Ashley Lott can get inside, scoring and rebounding, this one could go down to the wire. The boys are playing well lately, too. L.T. Lockett has emerged as a consistent offensive threat but all of his teammates can score too. Recently, Jermaine Harris and Andre Green have been igniting the offense and often the crowd. Get the Patriots in the game early and the Raiders may have a tough time fending them off.

Starr's Mill travels to North Clayton on Friday to face the Eagles. North Clayton has dominated it's opponents this year and defeated both Starr's Mill teams the last time they faced. The Lady Panthers played North Clayton even in the second half of their last game. If they can play two good halves of basketball, anything can happen. The boys team has played some great teams lately and played really well. For the Panthers to pull one out Friday, they must put bodies on North Clayton's big guys, try to draw fouls and shoot the lights out. On Saturday, Starr's Mill travels to Salem. If the Panthers can stay focused and patient, they should beat the Seminoles.

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