Ellijay, Ga — December means it’s time for region play in high school basketball in the state of Georgia and 7-AAA play tipped off on Tuesday, December 5th as the Pickens Dragons made the short trip up to Ellijay to take on the Gilmer Bobcats. Pickens came into the game at 3-2, while the Bobcats came into the game at 2-2 with wins over Northview and Murray County. A 20-8 third quarter run and a 31 point outing from Jackson McVey helped the Bobcats pull out a 76-71 win.

The first quarter of this game was a wild one as both teams got their offense going early. Caleb Lanford got things going for the Dragons with a bucket to give them an early 2-0 lead. It was all McVey to begin the scoring for the Bobcats as he scored the first 8 points of the game for Gilmer. The Bobcats would go on an 8-0 run to jump out to a 14-6 lead. McCord Purdy would make a basket and Dodge Davis would hit a three to cut the lead to 14-12.

After a bucket by McVey, Parker Davis went on a personal 5-0 run to give the Dragons a 17-16 lead. A 4-0 run by McVey gave the Bobcats a 20-17 lead. After a bucket by Parker Davis, Keegen Bryant and McVey would combine for a 4-0 run to make it 24-19. Just before the buzzer, Purdy hit a step back three to make it 24-22 Bobcats going to the second quarter.

The Bobcats, went on a 3-0 run to start the second quarter to stretch their lead out to 27-22. A bucket by Hayden Jones and back to back steals by Lanford that turned into layups for the Dragons gave Pickens a 28-27 lead. A layup by Jacob Becerra ended the 6-0 Dragons run and gave the Bobcats the lead back. The Dragons, followed that up with a 7-0 run as Purdy hit two free throws and a three pointer and Parker Davis made a basket to make it 35-29 Pickens.

Towards the end of the first half, after the Bobcats cut the Dragons lead to 3, Lanford split a pair of free throws and Purdy again beat the buzzer with a three to give the Dragons a 44-37 lead at the half.

Jones started off the second half with a three to give the Dragons a 47-37 lead. The Bobcats would then start to claw back. After that three pointer that gave the Dragons a 10 point lead, the Bobcats outscored Pickens 17-4 to take a 54-51 lead. Parker Davis, would split a pair of free throws to cut the lead down to 2. The Bobcats, would close out the third quarter scoring with a three pointer to make it 57-52 going to the fourth.

McVey, started the fourth quarter on a 4-0 run to make it 61-52. Jones, would get the layup and the free throw to cut the lead to 61-55. Later on in the quarter, the Bobcats would increase their lead to 72-60. The Dragons, would then go on a 10-0 run as Purdy, Lanford, and Parker Davis all contributed to the run to cut the Bobcat lead down to 2. From then on it was a free throw game and the Bobcats made theirs to get the win, 76-71.

7-AAA Region Standings:

Dawson: 5-2 (1-0)

Gilmer: 3-2 (1-0)

Wesleyan: 5-3 (1-0)

White County: 3-5 (0-0)

Pickens: 3-3 (0-1)

West Hall: 1-5 (0-1)

Lumpkin: 1-6 (0-1)

The Dragons, will be back in non-region action on Friday, December 8th as they head to Calhoun to take on the Sonoraville Phoenix. Pickens, defeated the Phoenix 50-46 on November 20th as part of the Pickens Thanksgiving Tournament. Tip off set for 8:30 pm.