TIFTON —
Tift County made it a clean sweep for the weekend with a pair of wins over the Crisp County Cougars at home Saturday night, while Friday night action saw Brannen Greene put on a show by himself. After dominating wins over the weekend, Tift County hopes to keep up the momentum when they head for Florida this week.
The boys are undefeated on the season and possess a No. 12 ranking according to the latest MaxPreps poll, while the girls have secured a winning record, 3-2, after winning their second consecutive game.
The Lady Devils topped the Lady Cougars, 58-52. Most of the offense was supplied by Brakia Bateman and DeeDee DeShazer, who each had 20 points.
After beginning their season with a loss to Westover, Tift has made strong showings in each game, including a tight first half against perennial state contenders, Buford. Saturday completed a weekend of sweeps as the both the Devils and Lady Devils took victories over Central High of Macon Friday.
Tift County’s boys remain undefeated after another blowout victory,, dominating Crisp, 72-43. Like the girls, a duo of Devils scored 20+ points. Tadric Jackson led the way with 26, while Greene had 20. Donell Huff joined them in double figures with 10.
Against the Central Chargers Friday, Greene delighted the crowd with a triple double, scoring 26 points, snatching 12 rebounds and delivering 10 assists, while the Devils nearly doubled their opponents with a 91-50 victory.
Adding to the Devil onslaught was Jackson, who had another 20 point night, while Rashawn Canady reached double figures with 11.
None of Tift’s opponents this season have come closer than 21 points, the average scored being 83-55.
The Lady Devils similarly crushed Central with a 58-27 win.
The Devils and Lady Devils hope to increase their winning streaks this week as they head to the Sunshine State for Christmas tournaments.
The Blue Devils participate in the City of Palms tourney in Fort Myers, which includes teams from 11 states. They will start today, playing against an opponent from the opposite coast — Long Beach Poly, from Long Beach, Calif.
If they win, their next opponent will be either from another faraway place or somewhere much closer to home: Omaha Central from Nebraska or Eagle’s Landing from McDonough, Ga.
The City of Palms tournament has long been a showcase for national talent and Tift will be bringing their own in Greene. The Kansas signee is ranked by ESPN as the No. 43 player in the nation.
The girls also head to Florida, scheduled to play teams from Dunbar and Labelle before participating in the Bulldog Holliday tournament at Flagler Beach against two more native opponents, Bradford and Seabreeze.
After hopeful fun in the sun in Florida, both the Devils and Lady Devils return home for the McDonalds Invitational, beginning Dec. 27.
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Related Photos
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Tadric Jackson dunks against Central Friday night. The Devils won, 91-50 to remain undefeated. Shine Rankin/sgasports.net
Blue Devils head for sunny Florida with hot streaks
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