Basketball: GHS, Buford and North Hall boys semis all on air

The Gainesville boys basketball team will travel to Kennesaw, while the Buford and North Hall boys will trek all the way to Savannah on Saturday to take part in the state semifinals -- and the Jacobs Media family of radio networks, along with Access North Georgia.com will be there every step of the way.

The trio are far from the only area teams doing battle this weekend, however, as we will also track the semifinal battles for the Dawson County and Towns County girls.

(NOTE: Be sure to check back with Access North Georgia later Friday to catch video features with three area basketball teams as they prepare for the semifinals.)

The Red Elephants (22-9) will battle Effingham County (27-4) at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Kennesaw State in a game that will be broadcast live on WDUN A 550.

Gainesville is back in the state semifinals for the first time since 2009 and faces a Effingham team that has won its first three state playoff contests by an average of 34 points.

Meanwhile, the Trojans (28-3) will take on Johnson, Savannah (23-6), in the Atom Smashers' back yard, battling in the Class AAA semifinals at 5:30 p.m. Saturday in a game that will be broadcast live on 102.9 FM.

North Hall is making its first semifinal appearance since 2010 and will take on a Johnson squad that features LSU signee Tim Quarterman (18.8 points per game) on the campus of Armstrong State.

The final contest of the night for area teams will feature Buford (26-6) against Savannah (27-3) in an 8:30 p.m. tip off at Armstrong State. The showdown will be featured on both 102.9 FM and AM 550.

The Wolves are back in the "Final Four" after a one-year absence and will face a balanced Blue Jackets team led by junior Chris Cokley (13.6 points per game).

Be sure to check with Access North Georgia.com throughout the weekend to keep up with results and read game reports from each contest -- including the Lady Tigers (26-5) battle with Southwest Macon (18-5), which will tip off at 4 p.m. Saturday in Savannah. The Towns County girls (26-4) will also take on Gordon-Lee (23-7) at 4 p.m. Friday at Fort Valley State in Peach County in the Class A Public bracket.