Basketball Game Preview: Northside - Jacksonville Monarchs vs. Havelock Rams

Northside - Jacksonville is 2-8 against Havelock since January of 2020 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Northside - Jacksonville Monarchs will head out on the road to take on the Havelock Rams at 6:00 p.m. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Last Tuesday, even if it wasn't a dominant performance, Northside - Jacksonville beat New Bern 37-33. Given the Monarchs' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 213th, while the Bears are ranked 440th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Madyson Wills continued her habit of posting crazy stat lines, dropping a double-double on 21 points and 15 rebounds. Those 21 points gave her a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Anyla Prass, who dropped a double-double on ten points and ten boards.

Northside - Jacksonville smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 13 offensive rebounds in four consecutive games.

Meanwhile, Havelock can bid farewell to their four-game losing streak thanks to their game on Wednesday. In a tight matchup that could have gone either way, they made off with a 35-34 win over South Lenoir.

Northside - Jacksonville pushed their record up to 6-3 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. The wins came thanks to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 29.0 points per game. As for Havelock, their win ended a five-game drought at home dating back to last season and bumped them up to 3-8.

Northside - Jacksonville suffered a grim 46-22 defeat to Havelock in their previous meeting back in February of 2024. Can Northside - Jacksonville avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.