The Pace Academy Knights had no answer for Banks County Leopards post Kamryn Grier, her teammates helped to maintain their lead when she ran into foul trouble, and the Leopards coasted to a 44-26 win in the opening round of the Class 2A playoffs on Tuesday in Atlanta.
The Leopards (11-17), a No. 3 seed from Region 8, advance to play Region 4′s top seed Josey (21-5), the defending 2A champions. The Eagles beat Jeff Davis 72-20 on Tuesday.
The Round 2 matchup will be played Friday or Saturday.
Grier, a 6-foot junior, finished with 20 points and eight rebounds.
The Leopards never trailed and opened on an 8-2 run, with Grier scoring six of those points. They led 13-7 when she picked up her third foul with 6:28 left in the second quarter, and clung to a 19-16 lead at halftime.
The Leopards pulled away in the third quarter with a 13-4 run, with Grier adding another seven points. By the time she picked up her fourth foul with 4:14 remaining, the Leopards were up 38-24.
Leopards sophomore guard Addison Hoard had a game-high six steals and chipped in 11 points, and sophomore post Carley Segars — another 6-footer — had seven points.
“I think we’re playing as good as we have all year,” Leopards coach Steven Shedd said. “We’ve had some ups and downs. We’ve had some injuries to fight through. At the same time, I believe our non-region schedule has helped to prepare us for this time of year. Our region schedule is one of the best in 2A...We just came down here and did what we do in Region 8, which is play physical and fast.”
In addition to Grier’s dominance in the post, the Leopards used their speed and solid ball movement to easily maneuver through the Knights full-court press, with Grier taking the ball across half-court herself at times.
Shedd isn’t counting his team out in Round 2.
“We expect to go out and win every game,” Shedd said. “We’re just going to play our style and hope for the best.”
For the Knights (15-8), a No. 2 seed from Region 6, the second-half rally never came, as they managed just 10 points in the final two quarters. They were led by senior guard Gabby Hudson’s nine points.
Banks County 11 8 14 11 — 44
Pace Academy 5 11 4 6 — 26
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