Kreager: State tourney just what 7-AAA needs

MURFREESBORO – The word tanking will likely be used in jest a few times over the next four days at MTSU’s Murphy Center in the TSSAA Girls Basketball State Championships.

Take it in stride. Yeah, it still hurts.

What happened between Riverdale and Smyrna affected all girls basketball teams in District 7-AAA at least as far as persona.

Here is a way to help that reputation: Make it an all-Murfreesboro Class AAA state championship final on Saturday afternoon.

Top-ranked Blackman and sixth-ranked Oakland begin their state championship quests today.

Oakland (26-7) plays Bartlett (22-10) at 11:30 a.m. And Blackman (29-2) plays fourth-ranked Mt. Juliet (31-2) at 1:15 p.m.

The two Rutherford County powerhouses are on opposite sides of the bracket in adherence to a TSSAA rule that states that two teams from the same region be placed in opposite sides.

Is there a better feel-good story that could come out of this week for Rutherford County girls basketball than if both teams were playing for trophies come 2 p.m. Saturday when the championship games are tipped off?

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. There is a lot of basketball to be played between now and then.

Oakland faces a Bartlett program making its first state tournament appearance since 2008. The Lady Panthers upset Region 8-AAA champion Memphis Overton in their sectional contest on Monday. Their strength is inside the paint. Ironically, so is Oakland’s.

The Lady Patriots, led by coach Jennifer Grandstaff, are back in their first state tournament since 2005.

Give Grandstaff credit, the veteran coach went through plenty of growing pains since making the state semifinals in 2005. Folks, Grandstaff had some extremely lean years at Oakland since 2005. However, she kept coaching through it all.

And now the Lady Patriots are back in the Glass House.

Blackman plays Mt. Juliet in a rematch of the 2014 state semifinals. This could be the best game of the first day. It’s the two highest-ranked teams left in Class AAA.

All eyes will be on Blackman point guard Crystal Dangerfield’s left ankle, which was injured in Monday’s sectional rout of Cumberland County. Will it be healthy enough to withstand today — let alone this week if the Lady Blaze are fortunate to win?

Yes, the attention today turns back to what matters — the girls still playing.

Tom Kreager is prep editor of The Daily News Journal. Contact him at 615-278-5168 or tkreager@dnj.com. Follow him on Twitter @Kreager.

TODAY’S GAMES

(All games at Murphy Center)

Admission: $10. Parking: $5

Class AAA

Bearden vs. Dickson Co., 10 a.m.

Bartlett vs. Oakland, 11:30 a.m.*

Blackman vs. Mt. Juliet, 1:15 p.m.*

Morristown West vs. Arlington, 2:45 p.m.

Class A

Middleton vs. Pickett Co., 4:30 p.m.

Community vs. South Greene,

6 p.m.

*WGNS (1450-AM, 100.5-FM)