Two dominant guards in Jaleel Smith and Cal Pass Jr. are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Huss Huskies are taking a road trip to challenge the Crest Chargers at 7:00 p.m. on Monday. One thing working in Huss' favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last 13 matchups.
Huss fought the good fight in their overtime game against Ashbrook on Friday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell to the Greenwave 95-89. The Huskies haven't had much luck with the Greenwave recently, as the team has come up short the last four times they've met.
Jaleel Smith
| 02/14/25 vs Ashbrook | 3 |
| 02/11/25 @ Stuart W. Cramer | 5 |
| 02/07/25 vs South Point | 3 |
| 02/04/25 vs Kings Mountain | 9 |
| 01/31/25 @ Crest | 2 |
| + 17 more games |
Despite the loss, Huss had strong showings from Zaiyir 'Zii' Phillips, who went 8-for-18 on his way to 30 points along with five rebounds and three steals, and Smith, who posted 26 points in addition to five boards and three steals. Smith is crushing it when it comes to steals: he's grabbed at least two every time he's taken the court this season. Antonio Worthy was another key player, going 7-for-13 en route to 15 points.
Even though they lost, Huss smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 17 offensive rebounds. That's the most offensive boards they've posted since back in February of 2024.
Meanwhile, Crest entered their tilt with Kings Mountain on Friday with six consecutive wins , and they'll enter their next game with seven. They walked away with a 72-63 victory over the Mountaineers. Given the Chargers' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 46th, while the Mountaineers are ranked 176th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Crest's win came from a few key players Huss will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Omari Faulkner, who went 7-for-12 to rack up 18 points. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in points. Another player making a difference was D'Various Surratt, who dropped a double-double with 14 points and ten rebounds.
Crest pushed their record up to 19-2 with the win, which was their fifth straight on the road. As for Huss, their defeat dropped their record down to 15-7.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Huss has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 31 boards per game. However, it's not like Crest struggles in that department as they've been averaging 34.2 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Huss came up short against Crest in their previous meeting back in January, falling 65-59. Can Huss avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
