Basketball Recap: White Oak Proves Higher State Rank Is No Mistake

With a playoff win on the line, White Oak rose to the challenge on Tuesday. They managed a 63-58 victory over the Rocky Mount Gryphons. Given the Vikings' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 93rd, while the Gryphons are ranked 254th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Zarion Hobbs

Points

02/25/25 vs Rocky Mount	20
02/18/25 @ Dixon	14
02/14/25 @ Swansboro	12
02/11/25 vs Dixon	11
02/07/25 vs Croatan	32
+ 18 more games

White Oak found their leader in sophomore Zarion Hobbs, who shot 50% from the field on his way to 20 points and seven rebounds. Hobbs continues to improve, besting his previous point total in each of the last three games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Trevor Highsmith, who dropped a double-double with 14 points and 13 boards.

White Oak was working as a unit and finished the game with 15 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Rocky Mount only six assists.

Brelyn Moses and Anthony Jones certainly did their best on Tuesday to avoid the loss. Moses went 8-for-14 en route to 17 points in addition to five rebounds and four steals, while Jones dropped a double-double with 17 points and 15 boards. Jones is also on a roll when it comes to shooting accuracy, as he's posted one of at least 45% in the last 28 games he's played dating back to last season. Another player making a difference was Zion Harris, who posted eight points.

White Oak's win bumped their record up to 16-8. As for Rocky Mount, their defeat dropped their record down to 15-8.

White Oak has already played their next match, a 77-72 victory against Northern Nash on the 28th. Rocky Mount does not have any more games scheduled as of now.