Region 1-AAA Tiebreaker: West-Oak HS vs. Crescent HS

It may have only been a regional tiebreaker that took place at a neutral site between 1-AAA combatants West-Oak and Crescent. It was extremely apparent that postseason fever was about to once again sweep the state of South Carolina.    The Warriors and Tigers had already done battle in a couple of occasions this season, but Friday evening's matchup turned out to be the most lopsided of the three get-togethers. West-Oak put together a dominant performance as the Warriors earned a 49-22 victory to dispatch of the Tigers.    West-Oak's record improves to 17-7 (and 8-3 against regional opponents). Crescent concludes its regular season at 16-6 with a 7-4 mark in Region 1-AAA.    “We knew that we needed to be more disciplined both on the defensive end, in terms of staying out of foul trouble and offensively,” Warriors first-year coach Annie Burgess said. “We've really worked on milking the clock at practice for best shot scenario and they executed tonight. I told (the team) it was one of the best defensive games I've watched.”   Regional Ramifications   The Warriors have clinched second place in a region that was already won by Walhalla. The top four finishers in the region will be in position for berths in the 3A state tournament.   Burgess mentioned to Prep Girls Hoops following the game that she has been proud all season of how her West-Oak players shelved individual accomplishments to focus on team goals.   Coach Michelle Parnell's Tigers assembling finishes third in the regular season region standings.   Neutral Site   Pendleton HS, which also competes in Region 1-AAA, was the neutral site for Warriors-Tigers on Friday evening. Interestingly enough, Pendleton's boys basketball team took part in a play-in game against Walhalla - which the Bulldogs won 49-31.   Jan. 17   Prior to Friday evening's matchup, West-Oak got the better of Crescent when the Warriors and Tigers met up together at the Warriors' home court. The margin of victory for West-Oak was 39-22.    Feb. 3   They also became well-acquainted last Friday as the scene shifted to Crescent's home court. The Tigers earned the victory on that occasion by a final score of 47-37.    Quarter-By-Quarter   Both teams brought healthy contingencies to Pendleton HS for Friday evening's game, but it became clear in the first quarter that it would be the Warriors' faithful that would have more to cheer about. West-Oak began the game on a 10-0 run and jumped out to a 14-4 advantage with one frame in the books.    That dominance continued in the second quarter as it was clear this game had more of a resemblance to the mid-January matchup than last week's. At halftime, it was 27-7 in favor of the Warriors.    With the third quarter having taken place, it became apparent that the victor of this one was not in doubt – simply what the point margin would be. It was 26 at the conclusion of the third quarter as West-Oak's lead was 38-12 with one quarter left to play.    The fourth quarter was the lone frame where the Warriors did not outscore the Tigers by a sizable margin by this game's standards. West-Oak had completed what was a dominant, 27-point win over Crescent.    “I'm just happy for West-Oak High School,” Burgess said. I've come in, the men's coach (Matthew Rowland) is also in his first year at West-Oak. Our athletic director (Tim Sheriff) has been phenomenal, just super supportive. And I think our records mirror each other, we kind of laughed about that the other day. And to have a home playoff game … it's the first time in a number of years.”   Backcourt and Frontcourt   The Warriors had a leading scorer in the frontcourt and one in the backcourt.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/02/IMG_1196-crop-3188x2093-1676120602.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-596959" width="329" height="216" /></figure>   The one in the backcourt was Joey Burgess, a 5-foot-9 freshman who concluded her evening with 11 points. She had one of four 3-pointers that West-Oak placed on the board for Friday's game.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/02/IMG_1248-crop-1917x1259-1676120753.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-596961" width="330" height="217" /></figure>   As for what the Warriors got done in the interior, those efforts were spearheaded by [player_tooltip player_id='265021' first='Makazia' last='Hunter'], who added 10 points to West-Oak's total. Hunter is playing in her final games in a Warriors uniform as she is a senior.   Bright Spot   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/02/IMG_1257-crop-3875x2545-1676120889.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-596963" width="334" height="219" /></figure>   Janiya Hill finished with five points and was a bright spot on what was otherwise a rough evening for the Tigers. She displayed her ability to draw contact and take her chances at the free throw line as three of her five came courtesy of the charity stripe.   Coach Burgess on SC high school hoops   “I graduated from West-Oak back in (1999) and the conference alignment has changed,” Burgess said. “I've done more research in the surrounding regions and … there's some really good basketball players out there representing our state. So, it's an exciting time for girls basketball and I'm just excited to be a part of it.”   <figure class="wp-block-image"><img alt="" /></figure>

It may have only been a regional tiebreaker that took place at a neutral site between 1-AAA combatants West-Oak and Crescent. It was extremely apparent that postseason fever was about to once again sweep the state of South Carolina.