The Bryan County Lady Redskins started the year right Tuesday with a 58-49 win over McIntosh County Academy in Darien.
BCHS (10-4 overall, 4-2 in Region 2-AA) used strong defense in the third quarter to get separation on MCA, which capitalized on Lady Redskin mistakes in the fourth to keep it close, BCHS head coach Mario Mincey said.

Kaylin Leggett led Bryan County with 22 points and had five steals and three assists. Julianne Brown had 15 points, eight rebounds and three steals, while Yasmine Crawford had 11 points and 10 rebounds.
On the last day of the of Portal’s Holiday Classic on Dec. 30, the Lady Redskins used strong first and third quarters to dominate Portal in a 48-27 victory.

Against Bryan County, the Lady Panthers couldn’t overcome a poor shooting night.
Chandalier Morgan scored a game-high 17 points. Breyonna Raymond had seven points.
The Lady Redskins jumped out to an early 12-4 lead in the first quarter, but in the second, the Panthers battled back to cut the deficit to just four points. At halftime, the Redskins led 22-18.

However, in the third quarter, the Lady Redskins caught fire, outscoring the Lady Panthers 15-2.
Crawford had 10 points and 10 rebounds, while Brown had nine points.
On Dec. 29 in the Portal Classic, four BCHS players scored in double figures to lead Bryan County to a 54-45 win over Jenkins.
Brown led the way with 18 points and added five rebounds and four assists. Crawford chipped in 13 points, 11 rebounds and three steals. Alayna Williams had 10 points, and Leggett contributed 10 points for the Lady Redskins.

Mincey called the contest “a tough and physical game from the jump.”
“I was pleased with the team effort on the defensive end,” he said. “It was good to get the win, but it was more important to play well after the Christmas break. I was really proud of how Alayna Williams and Alyssa Edwards stepped up in the victory.”
In Bryan County boys’ hoops action, the Redskins (8-5, 4-2) topped MCA 52-46 with Isaiah Tillman notching 19 points and Kimonti Murray adding 12.

BCHS head coach Randy Cooper said the home team made a game of it in the fourth quarter, after trailing by double digits, but Tillman’s 7-of-7 shooting from the free-throw line helped give Bryan County breathing room.

At the Gentlemen’s Classic in Statesboro, the Redskins fell 74-50 to Liberty County on Dec. 29 and 67-37 to Westover on Dec. 28.
Tillman had 18 points against Liberty, while Murray had
12 points. Against Westover, Tillman had 12 points, and Quran George had eight.
On Dec. 22, BCHS topped Screven County 64-40 in Sylvania. Tillman had 25 points, and Murray had 19.

Horace Holloman, Patty Leon and Jeff Whitten contributed to this report.