Basketball Game Preview: Louisburg Warriors vs. Carrboro Jaguars

The Louisburg Warriors will head out to challenge the Carrboro Jaguars at 7:30 p.m. on Monday. Louisburg is coming into the game on a three-game losing streak.

Louisburg is headed into the matchup out to prove that what happened against Southern School of Energy and Sustainability on Friday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Louisburg was outmatched by Southern School of Energy and Sustainability and fell 68-24. While losing is never fun, the Warriors can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 475th, while the Spartans are ranked 33rd).

The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Luke Sheldon, who posted six points.

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Carrboro). They blew past Granville Central 90-48 on Saturday. The team's explosion on offense also rewarded the Jaguars with their most commanding win of the season.

Louisburg better keep an eye on Bakari Watkins. He was instrumental in Carrboro's win, dropping a double-double with 31 points and 16 boards. What's more, Watkins also posted a 67% shooting accuracy, which is the highest he's achieved since back in February of 2024. Another player making a difference was Cooper Davis, who put up eight points.

The victory got Carrboro back to even at 12-12. As for Louisburg, their loss dropped their record down to 7-16.

Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Louisburg has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 23.1 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Carrboro struggles in that department as they've been averaging 32.5 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.

Louisburg came up short against Carrboro in their previous matchup last Friday, falling 49-45. Can Louisburg avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.