On Monday, the Putnam County girls’ basketball team defeated Social Circle 47-37 in the first round of the region tournament, securing a spot in the Class A Division I state playoffs.
The Lady War Eagles (14-8) will now return to the postseason for the first time in almost four years.
According to head coach Derrick Arrington, the team's win over Social Circle was a “weight lifted” off its shoulders.
“It was a weight lifted our shoulders,” Arrington said of the win. “But we always approach things with a day-to-day process, take things step-by-step, and every game is big because it is the next one.”
It was a much-needed win for the team, which also defeated Social Circle in the regular season finale on Feb. 4.
Putnam County’s girls ended the regular season on a 4-5 skid, but they were competitive in each loss against playoff-caliber competition. The Lady War Eagles came up short against several ranked teams.
Arrington said the nine-game stretch was good for his team.
“It ended well. We worked hard. All the girls worked hard and put in a bunch of effort,” Arrington said. “We’ve played in a tough region the last couple of years. So, we put ourselves in a position to advance in our region tournament and did just that last night [against Social Circle]. It was a big win.”
In the past two games, it seemed like the Putnam County girls righted their wrongs against Social Circle.
Arrington acknowledged that he’s seen improvement in several areas. His girls have been doing the “little things” correctly, including game preparation and a better understanding of situational basketball.
“We’ve gotten better at time management, understanding the clock and in-game situations, which is a big deal on this level,” Arrington said. “We know when to go as fast as we can, when to run the clock down, and we’ve been disciplined in using our fundamentals and the skills we’ve been taught. Managing the clock has been a big deal for us. Clock management has won it or lost it for us.”
Arrington also feels as if his team is ‘absolutely’ peaking at the right time.
“Last night, [against Social Circle], was a really good test for us against a really well-coached team,” he said. “There were times when we had to put our learning to use, not just the basketball part, but how to manage a situation. How to manage the clock and the game, and we came out on top.”
Putnam County will play Southwest Atlanta Christian (22-1) on Thursday at Lamar County High School in the second round of the region tournament. The Lady Warriors won the first matchup 55-43 on Jan. 14.
“We just need to do our part, which is to keep trying to win,” Arrington said.