MOULTRIE — The Colquitt County High boys basketball team played in a tournament in basketball-crazy Kentucky last week and this week will be exposed to some of the top teams in Florida and Alabama in its own tournament, the first Colquitt County Roundball Classic.

The Packers went 1-3 in the Citizen First Classic last week in Bowling Green, Ky., but coach Kirven Davis said the experience his team reeived was priceless.

With games against Boyd Anderson High of Lauderdale Lakes, Fla., South Miami and Westover this weekend, the Packers should be well-prepared for the Region 1-AAAAA part of the schedule that begins Friday, Jan. 5, at Houston County.

Davis said both tournaments offer his team a chance to play in “a playoff-type tournament.”

“For some of these guys, the region tournament was their first big tournament,” Davis said. “These will give us a playoff environment.

“Jeff Davis is ranked in Alabama. The Florida teams are ranked. Most of the teams in our tournament will go deep in their playoffs.”

Davis said that when he was hired, he was told that school system officials would like to play host to a tournament in Moultrie.

With the contacts he already had after being an assistant in Albany and ones he made during last summer’s schedule, Davis was able to put together a strong slate of schools.

The boys teams include Boyd Anderson High, coached by former Moultrie Packer Eugene Richardson; South Miami; Jeff Davis of Montgomery, Ala.; Washington County High, which has former Packer Ronald Bonner as an assistant coach; Westover High; and Colquitt County.

Suwannee High of Lake City, Fla., dropped out of the tournament on Wednesday, but Albany, Boyd Anderson, Westover, Washington County South Miami, Dougherty and Colquitt County will play.

And although Moultrie is somewhat off the beaten basketball path, coaches like the idea of bringing their teams here.

“They know their kids can come here and concentrate on basketball,” he said.

Colquitt County will take a 4-3 record into the tournament.

The Packers opened the season with three straight victories, including two over Worth County and one over Bainbridge in a game they trailed by eight after three quarters.

After losing three straight in Kentucky, the Packers won their tournament finale 67-61 over Adair County, Ky.

“We’ve been doing pretty decent,” Davis said. “But we’ve just got to play. We’re trying to stress to them to embrace this opportunity.”

There were some questions coming into the season about where the bulk of the scoring would come from and Rashawn Melvin has produced one definitive answer.

The 6-foot senior guard is leading the team in scoring, averaging 15.3 points a game. He has been in double-figures in each of the seven games and has a high of 23 in the loss to Rossview High of Clarksville, Tenn., in the Kentucky tournament.

Melvin has 18 3-pointers and three times already has scored four in a game.

And while Melvin is the only Packer averaging double-figures, Andrew Wallace is averaging 9 points and Channing Hudson is averaging 8.9 points.

Wallace has a high of 14 against Rossview. Hudson had a season-high 20 in the game against Worth County in Sylvester and added 15 in the comeback win over Bainbridge.

Dannie Hunt is the team’s leading rebounder with 36 in the Packers seven games.

And while the competition is expected to be strong, the Packers could benefit from once again being able to play on their home court.

Colquitt has not played at the Gladys Espy Gymnasium in exactly a month. The last time the Packers were at home was on Nov. 28 in its season-opening 63-56 victory over Worth County.

Admission to the tournament, which has seven games scheduled on each of the three days, is $8. A three-day pass is available for $20.

“The coaches have been real receptive,” Davis said. “I’m hoping the community will come out and show their support for their team.”

Following the tournament, Colquitt County will return to action on Tuesday, Jan. 2, at home against Thomas County Central.