Basketball Game Preview: Darlington Falcons vs. Lakewood Gators

The Darlington Falcons are taking a road trip to challenge the Lakewood Gators at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Last Friday, Darlington slipped by Lower Richland 31-30.

Meanwhile, Lakewood had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 11 points) and they went ahead and made it three last Saturday. They blew past the Saints 62-37. Given the Gators' advantage in MaxPreps' South Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 63rd, while the Saints are ranked 209th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Darlington better focus on containing Pop Cato and Darius Franklin as the pair were huge in Lakewood's win. Cato went 9 for 11 en route to 21 points and four steals, while Franklin went 7 of 14 on his way to 20 points along with seven boards and three steals. Cato's afternoon made it five games in a row in which he has scored at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Andre Mcbride, who posted five points and four steals.

Lakewood is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five matches, which provided a massive bump to their 11-8 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 61.4 points per game. As for Darlington, their victory bumped their record up to 12-7.

Darlington ended up a good deal behind Lakewood in their previous matchup back in December of 2024, losing 50-33. Can Darlington avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.