Basketball Game Preview: Riverside Ram vs. Briar Woods Falcons

The Riverside Ram will head out to face off against the Briar Woods Falcons at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Riverside knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past ten contests -- so hopefully Briar Woods likes a good challenge.

Last Tuesday, Riverside strolled past Stone Bridge with points to spare, taking the game 82-67. Given the Ram's advantage in MaxPreps' Virginia basketball rankings (they are ranked 18th, while the Bulldogs are ranked 146th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Max Lawson

Steals

01/28/25 @ Stone Bridge	2
01/24/25 @ Independence	2
01/21/25 vs Lightridge	3
01/16/25 @ Potomac Falls	2
01/13/25 vs Briar Woods	3

Riverside can attribute much of their success to Mason Ridgeway, who went 9 for 14 on his way to 26 points along with five assists and three steals, and Max Lawson, who went 9 of 10 en route to 22 points. Lawson has been hot, having also posted two or more steals the last seven times he's played. Joell Basue was another key player, going 5 of 6 on his way to 13 points.

Meanwhile, Briar Woods ended up a good deal behind Independence on Tuesday and lost 61-47.

Riverside pushed their record up to 17-1 with the win, which was their sixth straight on the road. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 78.0 points per game. As for Briar Woods, they have been struggling recently as they've lost six of their last eight matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 6-10 record this season.

Riverside didn't have too much breathing room in their game against Briar Woods in their previous matchup on January 13th, but they still walked away with a 76-70 victory. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Briar Woods' Devon Pettibone, who shot 6-for-9 from downtown and almost dropped a double-double on 28 points and nine rebounds. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Riverside still be able to contain Pettibone? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.