The Putnam County girls basketball team returned to the court on Jan. 23 after not playing for two weeks.
The top-ranked Lady War Eagles faced Utopian Academy at home in Eatonton and easily won 75–1, improving their overall record to 14–1 and 3-0 in region play. Their last game was against McNair on Jan. 9, which they won 75-19.
Putnam County head coach Derrick Arrington said his team was very active during the long break.
“It felt good to get back on the court and play a basketball game,” Arrington said after the win. “We used the time off to condition, recover, watch a lot of film, and get up a lot of shots. It was a unique stretch, but it was a really good opportunity to get our legs back under us and really hone in on some things on film.”
Despite Utopian Academy being non-competitive, the Lady War Eagles didn’t miss a beat on either end of the floor. Their defense played aggressively, forcing turnovers, while the offense capitalized on those mistakes.
“We want to remain an elite defensive team, so we focused a lot on communication — increasing our communication level, being loud, being heard, and being intentional when we talk on the court,” Arrington said.
Putnam forced double-digit turnovers in the win, with Kindall Ward leading the way in scoring with 10 points. A’Zayah Williams, Jada Baker, and De’Nadia Dunn also contributed eight points apiece in the lopsided win.
Arrington said he has gained valuable insight into his team over the past few months as it approaches the final stretch of the regular season. He appreciates how his players have responded to adversity head-on.
“[I’ve been impressed] when things aren’t going well, bad calls or what we thought were bad calls, delayed start times, the temperature in the gym — just any type of adversity,” Arrington said. “I was concerned about how we would respond to anything uncontrollable.”
Being ranked No. 1 in the state comes with significant pressure, but Putnam County is battle-tested and has several veterans on its roster.
Ward, Williams, Kadyn Dennis, Jaikarccie Smith, and Melody Richardson are all seniors and the team’s leaders. Juniors Eriyana Little and Journey Waller were also on last year’s team that went to the Sweet 16.
Arrington is confident in this year’s team but still wants his girls to take the season day by day.
“Everyone’s doing a good job in what their part of the team is, on and off the court,” he said. “So that experience helps.”
Putnam County has three games remaining on its regular schedule. The Lady War Eagles will host No. 3 Lamar County Wednesday night before traveling to Monticello on Friday to face Jasper County. The regular-season finale is set for Feb. 3 at home against Social Circle, with the region tournament to begin next month.