Preview: Asheboro Blue Comets vs. Oak Grove Grizzlies
Asheboro is 0-5 against Oak Grove since January of 2022 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Asheboro Blue Comets will look to defend their home court against the Oak Grove Grizzlies at 6:00 p.m. The squads are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Asheboro has struggled recently with three losses in a row, while Oak Grove will arrive with five straight victories.
Last Friday, Asheboro was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 59-54 to Montgomery Central. Asheboro has not had much luck with Montgomery Central recently, as the team's come up short the last two times they've met.
Sion Murrain put forth a good effort for the losing side as she dropped a double-double on 16 points and 14 rebounds. Another player making a difference was Kimry Comer, who scored 14 points along with five assists and four steals.
She wasn't the only one working in the assists department: Asheboro were working as a unit and finished the game with 18 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Oak Grove stacked a tenth blowout win onto their ever-increasing hoard on Tuesday. They blew past Montgomery Central 70-48. Given Oak Grove's advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 72nd, while Montgomery Central is ranked 214th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Trista Charles was her usual excellent self, scoring 31 points along with eight rebounds and two steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points she has scored all season. Avery Ray was another key contributor, scoring 11 points along with eight rebounds and two steals.
Asheboro dropped their record down to 3-13 with that loss, which was their 11th straight on the road. As for Oak Grove, they are on a roll lately: they've won 11 of their last 12 games, which provided a nice bump to their 15-2 record this season.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Asheboro have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 32.1 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Oak Grove struggles in that department as they've been averaging 33.6 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Asheboro was dealt a bruising 80-13 defeat at the hands of Oak Grove in their previous meeting on January 5th. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Charles, who dropped a double-double on 20 points and ten rebounds. Now that Asheboro knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
