"I thought we played really well in the second half. Starting in the third quarter, we played really good [defense]," Woodland coach Mike Tobin said.
The host Wildcats led 22-13 at the end of the first quarter and 41-29 at halftime, but Tobin's team held the Bulldogs to less than 10 points in the third as the lead ballooned to 59-38 at quarter's end.
Greg Murphy and Brandon Thompson scored 18 points each to lead the way for Woodland, while other scorers included Corey Tobin, 9; Xavier Niblet, 6; Tae Covington, 5; Deo Adams, 4; R.J. Williams, 4; and Qua Stocks, 2.
With the Wildcats seizing control of the game, Mike Tobin shuffled in players that hadn't seen a lot of varsity time.
"Some of the guys that were playing JV, we got them some minutes tonight," he said.
Aside from getting some little-used players well-earned burn, the Woodland head coach sounded glad to see his team maintain its focus and energy following a draining rivalry game the night before.
"I was just happy because it was a real tough game Friday night against Cass. It was a real big letdown," Tobin said of the narrow 68-66 victory.
The Wildcats improved to 15-0, 5-0 in Region 7-AAAA, with the weekend's wins. While the overall record is gaudy, the region mark is equally important since Woodland began last season 1-7 in the region before rallying for a 5-1 finish.
"I think the biggest difference is we've got a lot of experience. In high school sports, you gotta experience" things, Tobin said. "The game against Cass, could've went either way, but we haven't panicked.
"We've had some games where we've been down by double digits and didn't panic."
Northwest Whitfield and Creekview provide the next challenges for the Wildcats. Woodland travels to Tunnel Hill to play the former Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. before hosting the latter Saturday at 5:30 p.m.
Colonels 75, Tigers 49
Cass' boys basketball team rebounded from a heartbreaking defeat Friday to earn a pick-me-up victory against Bartow County rival Adairsville, 75-49.
Colonels coach Greg Scott thought his team may not burst out of the gates, but the hosts got things going en route to a big victory.
"We got off to a very slow start in the first quarter. They were up 8-0 before we scored," Scott said. "I was worried about us having a little bit of a letdown after last night."
Zeke Reed poured in 7 points in the first, with teammate Jozelle Payne chipping in with 3 to give Cass its quarter total. The Tigers led 15-10 after one.
Then, Scott said, the Colonels cranked it up on defense.
"We had a big second quarter, really put the clamps on them defensively," he continued.
Kadeem Sutton had 10 points, Payne 8 and Tony Mitchell 6 on two 3-pointers. Cass headed into the break ahead, 34-26.
In the third, the Colonels added another 24-point quarter to put the game out of reach at 58-36.
"The story tonight, I think, was we bounced back after a tough loss last night," Scott said, referencing Cass' 68-66 loss on tip to Woodland, another county rival. "I thought we did a good job on their big guy, Zach Coker, and we did a good job defending the 3-point line."
The Colonels shot 8 for 19 (42 percent) from beyond the arc and 31 for 57 (54 percent) overall.
Reed had 17 points to lead Cass, and Sutton scored 16; Payne 14; Jairus Blackwell and Jeremy Coone 3; and Drew McKaig and Chris Darden 2.
Scorers for Adairsville included Chanse Fuleki, 12; Roderic King, 11; Tyler Washington, 8; Coker, 6; Christian Howell, 4; Austin Harrell, 4; Marcus Childers, 3; and Demetrius Pitt, 1.
"We're shooting the ball well right now," Scott said. "I think Jozelle Payne was a big spark for us. Drew McKaig had a good floor game for us. Jeremy Coone came off the bench and had an aggressive game for us ... He blocked four shots in the fourth quarter."
The Colonels (9-6) hit the road for a tough road game at Rome, while Adairsville travels to Cartersville to face Excel Christian Academy. Both Tuesday games begin at 7:30 p.m.
Lady Tigers 42, Lady Colonels 19
Adairsville scooped up a much-needed win Saturday, ridding itself of a five-game skid and beating county rival Cass in high school girls' basketball action.
"It was good for our kids. They need one. We needed a win badly. We had a little bit more balanced scoring attack," said Lady Tigers coach Kent Howard. "[If] we score 40 or more points, we have a chance to win. That's a positive for us."
Stephanie Kuhrt led Adairsville with 11 points, and Mallorie Collum and Cassidy Howren had 9 and 8 points, respectively.
Amber Bowen was the leading scorer for the Lady Colonels with 9.
Neither team combined to eclipse the 5-point mark in the first as the Lady Tigers had 3 to Cass' 1 at the end of the quarter.
Adairsville then got things rolling, though, pushing its lead to 20-6 at halftime. Going into the fourth quarter, the Lady Tigers led 28-10.
"They're young just like we are ... but they did a great job. They had a big win against Woodland [on Friday]," Howard said. "My hope was that we were gonna catch them on a flat night."
"They do a great job with their kids ... We both have really young kids and a really young program, so we're both just scrapping," he added. "We're excited about our team. ... We love our kids. They're showing up for practice, and they're working hard."
The Lady Tigers (4-10) visit Excel Christian Academy on Tuesday, while the Lady Colonels (2-12) take a trip to Rome. There will be 6 p.m. starts for each game.