EAST JACKSON will get in a little extra court time prior to ringing in the New Year.
The Eagles and Lady Eagle basketball teams host the Wing Slinger Holiday Bash this week (Wednesday through Friday) in the final action of the 2011 portion of the schedule.
The East Jackson boys (3-6, 0-2) open tournament play Wednesday against Athens Academy at 8:30 p.m. The Spartans are off to a 5-2 start this year and riding a three-game winning streak.
“There are some good teams,” boys’ coach Brian Turner said last week. “We’ll open up with Athens Academy, who’s going to be solid team.”
East Jackson is coming off a 64-62 win over Hebron Christian Academy Dec. 20. Athens Academy will be very similar to the team East Jackson just faced, Turner said.
“(They’ll be) a lot like Hebron,” Turner said. “They’re going to pick us a lot and stuff like that. I think we’ll get to see a little more man-to-man against them.”
Loganville (9-1) and Stephens County (1-2) are other teams on East Jackson’s side of the bracket. Newton (4-3), River Ridge (4-7), Banks County (4-6) and Hebron Christian Academy (3-6) are on the other side of the bracket.
“Hopefully, it’s going to be three good days of a lot of good basketball,” Turner said.
The East Jackson girls (2-7, 1-1) open with Hancock Central, which is off to a 2-3 start this year. Tipoff is 7 p.m. Wednesday.
Coach Katie David pointed to the field of teams in the tournament, which includes Newton (5-2), Loganville (4-5), Sequoyah (3-8) and Banks County (7-3). She believes the three-day event should provide her young team — which is coming off a 43-39 loss to Hebron Christian Academy — some valuable experience.
“Some really, really good teams,” David said last week. “We’re excited about it. I’m excited about (our team’s) growth.”
Both teams return to subregion action Jan. 3 against Elbert County.
