Preview: Riverdale Warriors vs. Smyrna Bulldogs
Riverdale has enjoyed the comforts of home their last two games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will challenge the Smyrna Bulldogs at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Hopefully Riverdale focused on turnovers this week since the team gave up 19 on Friday.
Last Friday, Riverdale came up short against Stewarts Creek and fell 52-41.
Despite the loss, Riverdale had strong showings from Hudson Fuqua, who scored 10 points, and Gray Turek, who scored 7 points. Turek is absolutely dominating the block category: he's posted at least two every time he's taken the court this season. Another player making a difference was Ryan Edmiston, who scored 6 points along with 7 rebounds.
Meanwhile, Smyrna waltzed into Saturday's match with two straight wins but they left with three. They walked away with a 76-68 victory over Chattanooga School for the Arts & Sciences. Given Smyrna's advantage in MaxPreps' Tennessee basketball rankings (they are ranked 115th, while Chattanooga School for the Arts & Sciences is ranked 256th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
It was another big night for Jalylle Batey-roberts, who scored 29 points along with 7 rebounds and 3 steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Elliyon Kinzer, who scored 15 points.
Riverdale's win bumped their season record to 4-2 while Stewarts Creek's loss dropped theirs to 4-3.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Riverdale have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 31 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Smyrna struggles in that department as they've been averaging 24.2 per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out. Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more basketball content.
Riverdale came up short against Smyrna when the teams last played back in December of 2021, falling 70-65. Thankfully for Riverdale, Ashton Mccarver (who dropped a double-double on 29 points and 10 rebounds) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
