BASKETBALL: First round of state playoffs see area teams still alive, some runs end

Only a handful of teams survived after the opening round of Georgia High School Athletic Association’s annual climb to the top of the mountain on courts across the state, and many others fell just short.

Ranging from Class A to 6A, teams around the TSW area made their mark this week on the history books in one form or another for the basketball season.

Here’s a rundown of where area teams who made it to the state playoffs landed after the first round, and what’s happening in the second round:

North Paulding Lady Wolfpack

The Lady Wolfpack won big at home against a crosstown foe to advance to the Sweet 16 in the Class 6A state playoffs on Tuesday.

North Paulding (26-2) finished off the Paulding County Lady Patriots in a complete rout in a 77-51 victory in the Wolf’s Den on Tuesday night.

Paulding County ended their season with the loss with a 16-12 record, a semifinal and consolation game appearance in the region 3-6A tournament, and a playoff appearance.

The Lady Wolfpack are back in action Friday evening for the second round hosting Westlake.

The Lady Lions are coming off a 61-31 win over West Forsyth to open the playoffs.

South Paulding Lady Spartans

The Lady Spartans pulled off an upset and advanced to the Sweet 16 on Friday in the opening round of the playoffs.

South Paulding pulled off a 49-39 win over region champion Langston Hughes pushed them into the second round with a second rounder against region champ River Ridge, who advanced off a coast double-digit win over Northside-Warner Robins.

With the victory, the Lady Spartans travel to play a Lady Knights squad who are 21-7 overall and went perfect in the region.

South Paulding sits at 14-13 overall, but have momentum on their sides after the upset and a run in the region that allowed them to get into the fourth seed spot and ultimately earn a trip to the playoffs on the road.

Bremen Lady Blue Devils

Bremen put up a 50-point victory to open the playoffs on their home court, and host Heard County on Friday in the second round in a region rematch.

The Lady Blue Devils beat Jasper 59-9 in the opening round on Tuesday, advancing to 25-2 overall on the season.

Bremen is coming off a region title win over Model to take the top seed in the state for the Class A Division I playoffs this year.

Heard County beat Swainsboro to advance in a 56-37 victory on Tuesday.

The winner moves onto the Elite 8 this coming Tuesday, March 3 for the winner of the Putnam County-Fannin County game.

Hiram Hornets

A second round game on Saturday gives the Hiram Hornets a chance for keeping the season alive after a close win to open the Class 4A playoffs on Wednesday.

The Hornets took a 60-56 victory on their home court in the opening round, having finished second place in the region behind Allatoona in the Region 7-AAAA title game last week.

Hiram has a tough road ahead: they’ve got to topple a Region 1 champ Ware County with a trip on Saturday for the Sweet 16.

The Gators play host down in Waycross for the upcoming battle against the 25-3 squad.

Ware County defeated Walnut Grove in a 70-23 rout in the opening round to advance.

Haralson County Rebels

The Rebels were knocked off by Thomasville in the opening round after getting seeded in the 23rd spot.

However, Haralson kept it close, falling in a 59-53 finish against the Bulldogs to close out their season in the opening round of the playoffs.

The loss put the Rebels at 14-15 on the season overall after a run in the region tournament to the semifinals.

Bremen Blue Devils

The boys traveled over to East Laurens to open the Class A Division I tourney, and the trip home was a long one.

The Blue Devils finished off their season in a 74-51 loss to the Falcons after coming into the playoffs as the 20th seed.

Their 13-13 season included a region tournament semifinal bid, which saw them fall in a 73-33 game to Darlington.

East Paulding Raiders

The trip to Metro Atlanta for the Raiders ended in a rout as East Paulding’s season came to a close in the opening round of the playoffs.

The Raiders didn’t make it easy for the Panthers, taking a 67-61 loss to the champs out of Region 3-5A this season.

East Paulding finished their season with a 17-11 record following the Wednesday night loss, notching a fourth place finish in Region 5-5A on the 2025-26 campaign.

East Paulding Lady Raiders

They finished their season with a one-point loss at home against Newnan to close up the year with a 53-52 loss to the Lady Cougars.

East Paulding wrapped up the 2025-26 campaign with a 16-12 record, coming close to a region 5-5A title on the season with a runner-up spot to New Manchester.

Hiram Lady Hornets

The Lady Hornets season came to a halt, and this wone will bite for a while.

They took a 29-point loss to Creekside in a road trip on Tuesday to finish off the state playoffs in a one-and-done appearance after finishing fourth in Region 7-4A on the season.

Hiram finished the year at 10-17 overall.

South Paulding Spartans

No matter what the Spartans tried, they just couldn’t hold fast in the opening round of the playoffs.

Their season game to a hard end at home as they hosted a talented Dutchtown squad who finished off South Paulding in a 73-45 trip to the Douglasville area.

The Sparties will have to make due with a region runner-up in 5-5A this season, and a home playoff game despite the rout.

South Paulding closed out their 2025-26 campaign with a 14-13 record.