After falling 51-44 to St. Pius in the Sweet 16, the Cartersville boys’ basketball team finishes their season 27-2 under first-year head coach, Mike Tobin.

“We were up nine at the half and ended up losing by seven. It was a good battle…They had a 6-foot-9 guy blocking shots inside and they scored four three-pointers in the third quarter,” said Tobin.

Prior to facing off against the Golden Lions, Tobin said he anticipated a lot more pressure for his boys and a good game.

“It should be a great game. They’re going to play a better half-court defense and make it a lot more difficult for our guys to score,” said Tobin.

In round one of the playoffs, the ‘Canes knocked Elbert County out of the competition, 103-75.

“We came out and did a lot of good things,” said Tobin

Good things and score aside, Tobin said there was one thing his team needed to improve on — boxing out.

“We gave up a lot of second and third chance shots,” Tobin said.

Despite this issue, Cartersville still won by 28 points, a difference Tobin said was due to the Elbert County defense as they were unsuccessful in their traps, often leaving a man open for an easy basket.

There were five players for the ‘Canes that scored in double figures in round one — AJ Mosby with 20, Ryan Davis with 19, Hunter Benham with 14 and Corey Tobin and TL Ford, both with 10.

Overall, Tobin said it was a team effort that won this matchup.

“Everyone got in and gave quality minutes,” said Tobin.

With Tobin being a first-year head coach at Cartersville, going 27-2 is a great accomplishment and he gave a great deal of credit to the team.

“It feels great. I have some good, hard-working kids that work hard on and off the court and the coaches are all great, too,” Tobin said.

Tobin got a lucky draw this season as he inherited a team that had no seniors, allowing him to return all of his players next year, but Tobin said next season’s record may not look as nice as the current one.

“I’m trying to get us to play the toughest teams in the area and in the state,” Tobin said.

As the season wrapped for the ‘Canes over the weekend, Tobin recalled the many accomplishments his team had this year and stayed positive.

“Obviously I wish we were still going, but it was a great, great season,” Tobin said.