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While Memphis area high school girls basketball may not be as prominent as boys basketball, historically, there have been some good rivalries in girls basketball in the area. Here’s where The Commercial Appeal ranked the top girls basketball rivalries. 5. Memphis East and Whitehaven Robert Newman, who coached at both Melrose and Hamilton, remembers these matchups. If he didn’t have a game, he made sure to catch a Whitehaven vs. Memphis East game. Though it may not be as prominent as it was back in his coaching days, Newman said East and Melrose always had good teams and were two of the best in Memphis-Shelby County schools. “The crowd was going to be into the game from start to finish,” Newman said. “And there was never any blowouts. It was always a competitive game with those two.” 4. Whitehaven and Central For Memphis Central coach Rashad Haynes, he called this a traditional rivalry. The intensity is always high between the two teams and started back even before Haynes started coaching at Central. A lot of Haynes’ players from Snowden Middle School went to go play for Lynn Smith at Whitehaven. Overall, both Central and Whitehaven have had a lot of success, amping up the rivalry as well. 3. Houston and Collierville Justin Lewis, the Houston girls basketball coach, might not have a lot of experience with the rivalry, but in his three seasons has already seen just how important it is. Some of his current players used to play at Collierville, adding more intensity to it. “My girls on gameday, say that they’re more nervous than they are any other game,” Lewis said. ... "Feels like a playoff game every time we play those games.” 2. Memphis Central and Overton Though this rivalry existed before Haynes got to Central, it was fueled when Haynes got there because Overton had a lot of his former players from when he coached at Snowden Middle School. When Smith was at Overton, he said he and former Central coach Niki Bray had some battles as well. Both teams met several times in the region final and constantly made the state tournament. 1. Bartlett and Arlington Wes Shappley has seen this rivalry from both sides. Having coached at both schools, currently at Bartlett, Shappley truly knows what this rivalry means. "It gets chippy real quick,” Shappley said. “It gets chippy leading up days before the game.” In the last three seasons, they’ve played 10 times, including seeing each other in the district and region championship games in 2021-22. “Any time it’s a Bartlett vs. Arlington ordeal, it’s a big game,” Shappley said. “I’ve been on both sides and won big and lost big. Regardless of the talent parity, whether it’s close or not close, you’re still playing your rival and it’s a big deal.”

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RANKING THE TOP MEMPHIS AREA HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS BASKETBALL RIVALRIES

WYNSTON WILCOX

Commercial Appeal | 1/25/2024

PHOTO CREDIT: Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal