Basketball Preview: Whale Branch Warriors vs. Royal Live Oaks Academy Royal Knights
Whale Branch has enjoyed the comforts of home their last three games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will take on the Royal Live Oaks Academy Royal Knights at 6:30 p.m. on Monday. Given that the pair suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this game.
Whale Branch pushed their score all the way to 57 on Monday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They took a 61-57 hit to the loss column at the hands of Bamberg-Ehrhardt. Whale Branch found out winning isn't easy when your three-point shooting is a whole 27% worse than the opposition.
Despite the loss, Whale Branch had strong showings from Kevin Jenkins, who scored 17 points along with eight rebounds, and Greggory Gilbert, who scored 14 points along with six rebounds and three blocks. Another player making a difference was Bradford Thompson, who scored six points along with three steals.
Meanwhile, after soaring to 63 points the game before, Royal Live Oaks Academy were a bit more limited in their game on Friday. They were beaten by Bridges Prep 86-15. While losing is never fun, Royal Live Oaks Academy can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' South Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 252nd, while the Buccaneers are ranked 117th).
Whale Branch's loss ended a three-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 13-9. As for Royal Live Oaks Academy, their defeat dropped their record down to 2-7-1.
Everything came up roses for Whale Branch against the Royal Knights in their previous matchup back in January as the team secured a 76-11 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Whale Branch since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
