Basketball Recap: Riverside Beats Jackson Central Merry for Their Third Straight Victory

Riverside waltzed into their match on Wednesday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They walked away with a 64-52 victory over the Jackson Central Merry Cougars. This was a revenge game for the Panthers: when they faced off against the Cougars back in February, they had to take a 61-45 loss.

Jack Cupples

Points

02/26/25 vs Jackson Central Merry	16
02/24/25 vs Liberty Tech Magnet	20
02/14/25 @ Liberty Tech Magnet	24

Riverside's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Jack Cupples, who dropped a double-double with 16 points and ten boards. The game was Cupples' third in a row with at least 16 points. Another player making a difference was Austin Shelton, who went 6-for-7 en route to 17 points.

Riverside was working as a unit and finished the game with 13 assists. That's the most assists they've posted since back in December of 2024.

Riverside's win bumped their record up to 17-13. As for Jackson Central Merry, the defeat snapped their winning streak at four games and leaves them with a 7-6 record.

Riverside didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next contest, a 67-63 loss against Gibson County on the 1st. As for Jackson Central Merry, they will be taking part in a tournament against Westview at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Jackson Central Merry has given up an average of 68.2 points per game this season, so hopefully the team got some defensive drills in this week.