Plenty of local basketball to bring in 2026 on Friday:
Games at WSCC, Cullman, Vinemont, Fairview, WP January 2:
GDW Analysis:
Friday will be very entertaining for local prep basketball on New Year's weekend.
Teams will take to the hardwood with the true local hoop fan having plenty of options on where they want to be at January 2 of 2026.
At Wallace State CC:
Cold Springs vs. Southeastern 9:00
Mortimer Jordan vs. Parker 10:30
Decatur Heritage vs. East Lawrence 12:00
Good Hope vs. Marion Co (G) 1:30
Albertville vs. Austin (G) 3:00
Albertville vs. Austin 4:30
The hottest team locally starts the post New Year's Day schedule. Cold Springs is 16 & 1, winners of 12 straight and No. 3 in the 2A state prep poll.
Decatur Heritage comes back to Cullman County after playing last weekend in the West Point Christmas Classic. The Eagles are 2nd in 2A hoops, ranked just ahead of Cold Springs.
Returning back to the area after enjoying their time in Destin, Florida, the Good Hope Lady Raiders have a 16 & 3 record. Good Hope was the winner of the Sandestin Invitational by defeating Navarre, Florida Tuesday in the title bout 57 to 47.
The No. 2 ranked group in 7A girls will be in the spotlight in the late afternoon.
Albertville Lady Aggies have won 11 of 12 decisions and feature one of the best shooters in the state in senior left hander Lani Smallwood.
Albertville will follow up with the last game on the schedule against Austin. Albertville was seen by Gameday Weekly December 30 in coming from behind to beat Shelbyville Central 64 to 59 in the Border Wars Classic at Athens High School.
At Bearcat Arena, Cullman High School:
John Tekulve Classic
Cullman vs. West Morgan (G) 5:30
Cullman vs. West Morgan 7:00.
An event to honor and recognize former Cullman coach John Tekulve will set the scene with two hotly contested games expected.
The Lady Bearcats bring a 14 & 3 record into this classic, going 2 & 0 earlier in the week in the Border Wars from Athens.
Cullman shot 75 percent from the FT line in the 4th period Tuesday to slide by Athens 56 to 50. The game was tied at 34 to 34 entering the final period.
West Morgan's Lady Rebels are 10th in the latest 4A poll. They have been on the winning side in 10 of their first 12 games of the current season.
Cullman is eagerly waiting for a challenge from West Morgan with former Bearcat coach Bobby Meyer in his 2nd season with the Rebels. Cullman is 16 & 2 after wins over Hewitt Trussville 67 to 59 and Chelsea 75 to 55 from the Border Wars Classic.
West Morgan ranks 7th in 4A hoops, having an 8 & 1 mark prior to the start of the current week.
At Joe Shults Gymnasium, Fairview:
Corner vs. Fairview (G) 6:30
Corner vs. Fairview 7:45
Fairview says hello to the Corner program with the Lady Aggies and Aggies hoping home court can be to their advantage Friday evening.
Corner has played good hoops in Cullman County with 3 wins in November from the Hanceville Thanksgiving Tournament and 3 victories last weekend at the West Point Christmas Classic.
The Yellow Jackets, coached by Cold Springs native Nathan Sanders, have 12 wins against 2 losses.
Fairview Lady Aggies have gone 4 wins in their last 5 games from their home facility. Fairview earned a 79 to 60 victory December 18 against Austin and two nights later, held off Lee Huntsville 46 to 41.
At the Pinnacle, Vinemont:
JB Pennington vs. Vinemont (G) 5:45
JB Pennington vs. Vinemont 7:00
The January schedule for Vinemont has both in a rematch with Pennington from AHSAA 3A, Area 11.
The Lady Eagles are 4 & 0 and on top of the area standings.
Vinemont is 3 & 1, tied for the area lead with Holly Pond.
Both have been in a slump with the Lady Eagles losing 3 in a row and the Eagles in a 4 game losing skid.
At Jim Boyd Gymnasium, West Point:
Cordova vs. West Point 6:15
Back to the regular season schedule is the Warriors with Cordova coming in from Walker County Friday.
West Point went 8 & 3 in December games and is 11 & 6 for the season.
The Warriors are out to return to the win column after their momentum was stopped on Monday afternoon by Gulf Shores 61 to 51 in the West Point Christmas Classic.
Cordova is 6 & 5 overall with the Blue Devils beating Sulligent 68 to 60 Tuesday to break a 2 game losing streak.
Photo of Cold Springs Eagles' coach Drew Adams with Hartselle coach Josh Golden in the Hanceville Thanksgiving Tournament semifinal round November 25 from Lane Horton Gymnasium.
GDW photo by Johnny Thornton.
