Ensworth seeks 22nd straight win, DII regular season crown

Thursday, January 29, 2009 at 11:37pm

Packing a two-month winning streak, Ensworth’s top-ranked Tigers are closing in on the region regular season championship.

Since a Nov. 28 loss to Clarksville, the top-ranked Tigers (22-2) have won 21 straight games, the longest streak in Nashville boys basketball as they head into a match-up tonight at Brentwood Academy. They remain ranked No. 1 in AP in the DII division.

“We’ve played pretty well,’’ coach Ricky Bowers said recently. “But as everyone knows, it’s how you do in the tournaments that everyone remembers.’’

Bowers knows a little about BA basketball, too. He took his BA team to consecutive state finals in 1990 and ’91 when the Eagles were in Class AA.

An Ensworth win tonight clinches the DII East/Middle Region boys championship and top seeded spot for the tournament which the Tigers host in mid-February. After opening round games, winners advance to the semifinals and finals at Ensworth Feb. 16-17.

Ensworth is 8-0 in the region and already owns a 79-52 romp at home over BA Jan. 9 when Gary Pope and Tavarres Jefferson led the way with 22 and 20 points. Pope is one of the Nashville area’s leading scorers at 21 ppg.

Weldon Garlington, who scored 22 in the first game, is one of the leaders for the Eagles, who are ranked No. 10 in AP and are 10-6 and 6-2 in the region.

The girls game also carries some impact in the standings. Defending state champion Ensworth (14-3) is 7-2 in the region, tied with BA (15-8 and 7-2). The winner stays in contention for the regular season title. Ensworth is ranked No. 5 in AP, BA No. 8.

Taylor Reece leads the Eagles in scoring at 13.6 ppg.

A key District 9-AA girls game tonight sends first-place CPA to FRA. Those two, along with Hume-Fogg and Lipscomb, are jumbled up in the wide-open race.

Ryan –MBA wrestling: Father Ryan visits old rival Montgomery Bell Academy Saturday at 7 p.m. in one of the top wrestling matches of the season. The Irish then host the DII state duals the following weekend, Feb. 6-7.

All-Star Hockey: The annual GNASH (Greater Nashville Area Scholastic Hockey) league North vs. South all-star game will be held Saturday at 5 p.m. at Centennial Sportsplex. Ryan is atop the Gold Division standings, Independence leads the Blue.

Nashville area prep schedule

Tonight’s games

Franklin at Ravenwood

Ensworth at Brentwood Acad.

Ezell-Harding at Pearl-Cohn

Stratford at Glencliff

Maplewood at Antioch

Hillwood at Hillsboro

Overton at Brentwood

Independence at Centennial

M.L King at David Lipscomb

Pope JPII at BGA