Two dominant guards in Cal Pass Jr. and Jaleel Smith are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Crest Chargers will square off against the Huss Huskies at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Crest is currently enjoying a perfect season and no doubt wants to keep things rolling.
Last Saturday, Crest strolled past Asheville with points to spare, taking the game 72-58. Given the Chargers' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 39th, while the Cougars are ranked 483rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
| 01/04/25 vs Asheville | 4 |
| 12/28/24 vs Hendersonville | 4 |
| 12/27/24 vs Hillcrest | 2 |
| 12/26/24 vs Burns | 3 |
| 12/20/24 vs Forestview | 4 |
It was another big night for Pass Jr., who went 9 of 13 en route to 18 points along with eight boards and four steals. He has been hot, having posted two or more steals the last five times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of D'Various Surratt, who posted 16 points along with six rebounds and five assists.
Crest smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 25 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in 32 consecutive contests dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, Huss beat Hickory Ridge 79-72 on Monday.
Huss found their leader in freshman Smith, who went 11 of 16 on his way to 32 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Zamarius 'Z-Man' Gladden, who went 7 of 10 on his way to 16 points in addition to five assists and five boards.
Crest pushed their record up to 8-0 with the victory, which was their eighth straight at home dating back to last season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 72.5 points per game. As for Huss, their record now sits at 7-3.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Crest has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 37.9 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Huss struggles in that department as they've been averaging 26.8 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Crest came up short against Huss in their previous meeting back in February of 2024, falling 88-82. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Huss' Zaiyir 'Zii' Phillips, who dropped a double-double on 27 points and 12 assists. Now that Crest knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
