By Matt Vines

EAST POINT – The last time the Riverdale Academy girls stepped onto the basketball court, the Lady Rebels couldn’t quite crack through in the Class 2A State Tournament and punch their ticket to the overall state tournament.

All but one Lady Rebel returns and will step back on to the floor when the season begins Saturday at Silliman Institute for a 1 p.m. tip.

Riverdale coach Trey Pittman said these Lady Rebels are already in mid-season form after a 24-5 record this past season.

“We lost just one senior post player in Madison Chamberlin,” Pittman said. “We look to be in mid-season form already, and we better be ready with a Class 5A opponent on Saturday.

“Our guards are the strength of our team again with Mary Claire Jones, Jadyn King and Hanna Huddleston.”

Jones was selected to the MAIS Future’s All-Star game this past season as a sophomore.

But Riverdale does have some inside presence with posts Makayla Pickett and Julia Grace Riggs.

“I think Jones and Pickett are the two best players in the MAIS in our classification,” Pittman said. “Pickett and King are our captains, and the girls work very hard because of the leadership of those two.”

Pittman pulled double duty with the boys and girls in his first season back on the Riverdale sideline, but he’ll focus just on the girls this season.

Back-to-back practices after undergoing back surgery took its toll.

But assistant coach Ty Jones assumes the lead role of a boys team that looks to take the next step after reaching the Class 2A state tournament with a fourth-place finish at regionals.

The Rebels don’t start their season until Nov. 11, and they’ll attempt to rebuild from a team that lost five seniors off a 10-win team.