Basketball Recap: River Bluff Comes Up Short

River Bluff had lost six straight at home, but on Friday they dropped down to 1-13 to make it seven. 2026 welcomed they with a 71-50 loss courtesy of the Nation Ford Falcons. While losing is never fun, the Gators can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' South Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 221st, while the Falcons are ranked 30th).

Despite the loss, River Bluff still got an impressive performance from Ford Stratton, who posted 12 points and five rebounds. Another player making a difference was Alex Kirylo, who had four points and 12 boards.

As for Nation Ford, the victory (which was their eighth in a row) raised their record to 11-3. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 68.0 points over those games.

Nation Ford found their leader in freshman Makai McKnight, who shot 63% from the field en route to 18 points and four steals. McKnight is on a roll when it comes to field goal percentage, as he's posted one of at least 50% in the last seven games he's played. AJ Cureton was another key player, putting up nine points and six steals.

Nation Ford wasted no time getting back out on the court and has already played their next contest, a 62-59 victory against Indian Land on the 6th. Hopefully River Bluff paid attention to the Falcons' game: the next time they hit the court , they'll take on the Falcons at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday.