Basketball Game Preview: Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy Gryphons vs. Shelby Golden Lions

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Previous Games

02/11/25 - Home	62-45 W
01/29/25 - Away	58-41 W
02/13/24 - Away	53-47 W
01/19/24 - Home	72-41 W
02/07/23 - Home	35-60 L
+ 3 more games

Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy and Shelby are an even 4-4 against one another since January of 2022, but not for long. The Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy Gryphons will head out on the road to challenge the Shelby Golden Lions at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are coming into the match red-hot, with Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy sitting on ten straight victories and Shelby on three.

Last Tuesday, everything went Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy's way against Bessemer City as Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy made off with a 62-36 win. The Gryphons have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 14 contests by 21 points or more this season.

Meanwhile, even if it wasn't a dominant performance, Shelby beat Burns 57-51 on Tuesday.

Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy better focus on containing Da'Mani French and Bre Mcentire as the pair were huge in Shelby's win. French posted 15 points along with eight steals and five boards, while Mcentire almost dropped a double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds. The dominant performance also gave French a new career-high in field goal percentage (67%). Kimari Tate was another key player, putting up five points.

Shelby smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive boards in three consecutive games.

Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy's victory was their eighth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 18-6. Those victories came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 27.9 points over those games. As for Shelby, their win bumped their record up to 18-8.

Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy strolled past Shelby in their previous matchup last Tuesday by a score of 62-45. The rematch might be a little tougher for Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.