The Wakefield Wolverines and the Jordan Falcons will round out the year against one another at at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. One thing working in Wakefield's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last three contests.
Last Friday, Wakefield beat Apex 58-47. Given the Wolverines' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 99th, while the Cougars are ranked 469th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
| 12/20/24 vs Apex | 5 |
| 12/17/24 vs Athens Drive | 3 |
| 12/10/24 @ Leesville Road | 3 |
| 12/14/24 vs Independence | 2 |
| 12/19/24 vs Chapel Hill | 1 |
Wakefield found their leader in sophomore Ethan Wisler, who posted 17 points along with seven rebounds and five assists. Those five assists set a new season-high mark for Wisler. Colin Taylor was another key player, putting up nine points along with eight boards and three steals.
Wakefield smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive boards. That's the most offensive rebounds they've posted since back in February.
Jordan has been a dominant force so far, but they're in the middle of a mini-slump at the moment. They lost to Garner on the road by a 56-42 margin on Saturday. The game marked the Falcons' lowest-scoring match so far this season.
Wakefield will have to keep a close watch on Derek Ross Jr and Rivers Knight, a pair of players who had a big impact on Jordan's prior game. Ross Jr went 5 of 12 on his way to 12 points in addition to five assists and three steals, while Knight dropped a double-double on ten points and ten boards. Knight is on a roll when it comes to rebounds, as he's now pulled down eight or more in the last five games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Duece Sumpter, who put up six points and five rebounds.
Jordan's defeat ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 7-2. As for Wakefield, they are on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six contests, which provided a nice bump to their 6-3 record this season.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Wakefield has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 30.8 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Jordan struggles in that department as they've been averaging 23.4 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Wakefield came up short against Jordan when the teams last played back in December of 2021, falling 57-47. Thankfully for Wakefield, Ronald Bridges (who went 7 of 10 on his way to 20 points and five steals) 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.
