The Tigers face Georges Valley, which dismantled No. 1 Hall-Dale on Thursday.
By Randy Whitehouse
Staff Writer

AUGUSTA – The last time Jay and Georges Valley met on the court, the Tigers were in the midst of a 15-game winning streak that continues today, while the Buccaneers were in the throes of their worst stretch of the season, a four-game losing streak.

Jay won that game on Georges Valley’s home court, 71-54, back on Jan. 17. The Tigers used a 22-9 second quarter outburst to hand the Bucs their third loss in that four-game skid.

But anyone who saw the fourth-seeded Bucs thoroughly dismantle No. 1 Hall-Dale in Thursday night’s semifinal knows that they have emerged from their depths a stronger basketball team.

“Georges Valley is playing great basketball right now,” said Jay coach Mike Child. “They’re peaking at the right time and shooting lights out. They’re playing like we were playing the last 14 games before (Thursday) night.”

The second-seeded Tigers (18-2) admit their heads were a little big going into the semifinals with a 14-game winning streak and facing an underrated St. Dom’s team. The Saints nearly made them pay, as Jay had to rally from a 10-point fourth quarter deficit to send the game to overtime, where they pulled out a 48-44 win.

After an intense practice Friday, Child isn’t worried about his team coming out flat again tonight.

“It’s very very, very important for us to come out with the intensity,” Child said. “I guarantee you you’ll see a different Jay Tiger team than you saw against St. Dom’s.”

Among those taking note of the difficulty Jay had with St. Dom’s was Georges Valley coach Nick DePatsy.

“We saw some things that we liked that St. Dom’s was doing, so hopefully we can work some of that in,” DePatsy said.

The Bucs (14-6) will need to change some things to improve upon their last performance against the Tigers. That night, Jay shut down A.J. Staples and David Wilgus, GV’s two biggest playmakers. The Bucs, meanwhile, couldn’t stop two of Jay’s biggest playmakers, Justin Wells (23 points) and Marc Kelvey (18 points)..

“They’re very athletic. They’ve got Wells and Fry and Kelvey and you can’t ask for three better players in our conference,” said DePatsy. “We’ve got to rebound with them. That’s the key to them. But they’ve got to rebound with us, too.”

Georges Valley has dominated the boards in their first two tournament games, outrebounding both Livermore Falls and Hall-Dale by better than a two-to-one margin. Brett Hutchinson (25.5 points, 14 rebounds per game in the tournament) and A.J. Staples (15 ppg. 12.5 rpg) have been the biggest factors on the boards, but all of the Bucs are a threat to attack the offensive glass.

“If they’re going to send five guys to the boards, we’re going to have to send five guys with them,” Child said. “We’re going to have to sweep the glass, or at least be in contention with them.”

The Tigers have the size to contend with the 6-4 Hutchinson and 6-2 Staples in Zach Charles (7 ppg. 9 rpg) and Sean Fry (18 ppg), both listed at 6-5. Kelvey and Wells will have to help out, though, to limit GV’s second chances.

Speaking of second chances, the Bucs will be relishing theirs. Tonight’s game is a rematch of the 2002 regional final. Jay rallied to win that game in similar fashion to Thursday night’s win, overcoming a 10-point deficit with three minutes left to send the it into overtime, where they won 77-72. A week later, the Tigers were state champions.

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