With a tough 31-47 loss at home against Chapel Hill in the first round of the state tournament, the mens basketball team’s historic season has come to an end. A team that will never be forgotten here at North Atlanta, they united the students and community together and made countless memories. From bringing a playoff game home to Sardens Court for the first time in over five years to knocking off the number one seed in the region, it was one heck of a season for the Dubs.
After a hot start for the boys where they went 5-2, they kept the momentum going in region play winning three of their first four and putting them in good position to claim a top seed. They stumbled mid season dropping three out of five including one region game to a tough Lambert team. The mid season losing streak could have torn the team apart, but Coach Wells made sure to keep the guys locked in during their rough streak. “I kept telling the team we were going to be just fine,” she said. “We just had to work extra hard at practice to get where we wanted to be.”
Then the boys in black and silver went on a heater, winning eight straight region games to lock down the number two seed in the region for the first time in five years. The streak ended with two blowout wins against the number one seed Lambert where the Warriors shut down three-star forward Will Dopfer, and the senior night slaughter of four seed West Forsyth where the dubs pummbled them 63-43. “It was crazy to go up against someone projected to the next level,” junior point guard Will Balch said. “I mean, crazy may be an understatement, that kid can ball.”
The Warriors had lots of momentum heading into the region tournament and had the trophy on their mind, they knew how important it was to claim a one seed in the state tournament. They started off strong in the tournament winning three straight inculding a 81-34 mugging of the Denmark Danes. These wins put the Warriors in the region championship where they would rematch the Lambert Longhorns. This time, the Longhorns got the best of the Warriors to claim back to back region tournament championships, leaving the two seed for the Dubs.
A tough Chapel Hill team awaited the Warriors in the first round of the state tournament, but the boys in black and silver had the 6th man advantage of the warzone. The students and community showed out like they did all season hoping for a first round win. Unfortunately Chapel Hill was just too much to handle for the Warriors, they dropped the game 47-31 which marked the end of their historical season. It will forever be one to remember.
