Rutland, Westside take home region titles and lock up the one seed in state playoffs

The region tournaments finish on Saturday and teams are locking in their seeds for the state playoffs that begin next week. Here is a look at the scores and highlights from around Middle Georgia in the region title games.

Rutland 48, Jackson 41

Rutland senior guard Kennedy Stephens led the team with 15 points but none were more important than the pair of free throws with 16 seconds left in the game that put the Hurricanes up 46-41.

Jackson grabbed the momentum after junior forward Gabbi Cartagena hit an and-1 layup with just over two minutes left to cut the lead to two. But Stephens’ play down the stretch helped secure the win for the Hurricanes.

For Rutland, this win secures the number one seed heading into the state playoffs and home-court advantage. The Hurricanes are 12-1 at home this season. Jackson will also get a home game as the number two seed.

Westside 59, Central 49

The last two seasons Central took home the region championship over Westside. The Seminoles got a taste of redemption with their win over the Chargers in the region title game and wrapped up the number one seed.

Central’s big man, Quay Primas, got into foul trouble early. This allowed Westside to run a two-man set on the right side of the court with its star junior guards Kowacie Reeves Jr. and Javian Mosley, something that head coach Josh Grube said they hadn’t run before. Each finished with 19 points.

The move proved to be the key to the game as Westside pulled away down the stretch after the two traded the lead for most of the game.

Westside’s reward is the number one seed and a pair of guaranteed home games in the state playoffs. Central will head into the playoffs as the two seed. It will host at least one game at home.

Girls championship scores

Stratford 39, GMC 22

Valdosta 51, Houston County 26

Washington County 49, Southwest 46

Boys championship scores

Warner Robins 52, Veterans 50

The Telegraph will update with scores from around Middle Georgia as championship games finish throughout the day.

This story was originally published February 8, 2020 at 5:52 PM.