No. 9 Springbrook already has clinched the Montgomery 4A East division title and one of the top two seeds in the Maryland 4A West Region playoffs. But Blue Devils Coach Tonya Banks said her team won't take it easy in two of its toughest regular season games, tomorrow against No. 8 Gaithersburg and Tuesday against No. 6 Paint Branch. 

"Of course, if I had to choose, I want [to win in] the playoffs," Banks said. "But these are big games for us. We want to win them. We look forward to these two games." 

Montgomery County's final week of games includes several tantalizing interdivisional games that will mean a lot for bragging rights and confidence, but little in terms of playoff position. Tomorrow, Class 1A stalwart Poolesville faces defending 4A state semifinalist Damascus in a rivalry game. Tuesday, two days after the regional tournament draw, Bethesda-Chevy Chase, which is third in the 3A/2A/1A division, plays 4A West runner-up Whitman. 

The two games featuring Springbrook (19-1), though, are the most intriguing. Gaithersburg (21-0), the region's likely top seed, played only one game this season in which it did not win by at least seven points -- an exciting 64-62 overtime victory over Springbrook during the Blue Devils' holiday tournament. Tomorrow's game also will be played at Springbrook; if the teams meet again, it would be in the regional final, which is held on a neutral floor. 

"This game is important for us in terms of our overall goal, to have a winning season," Gaithersburg Coach Ivan Hicks said. "If you can have a team that can go the whole season without losing a game, that's quite an achievement in any sport." 

Paint Branch (19-1), the defending 3A runner-up located five miles from Springbrook, has not lost a regular season game to a county team in more than two years. In last year's meeting, Paint Branch made a basket in the final 30 seconds to win by one point. 

"I look at our schedule as a positive thing," Banks said. "We're playing two really good teams. I look at it as great preparation for the playoffs. These are the types of teams you're going to have to beat in the playoffs." 

-- Sean P. Flynn