Basketball Recap: Gavin Ward and Joshua Gladden Secure Win for James Island

James Island hadn't done well against West Ashley recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. The James Island Trojans were the clear victor by a 71-50 margin over the West Ashley Wildcats. This was a revenge game for the Trojans: when they faced off against the Wildcats back in January, they had to take a 50-49 loss.

Leading James Island to victory were Joshua Gladden and Gavin Ward. Gladden went 7 for 12 on his way to 20 points, while Ward posted 14 points along with six rebounds and five assists. The dominant performance gave Gladden a new career-high in points. The team also got some help courtesy of Parker Renault, who dropped a double-double on 11 points and 11 boards.

They weren't the only one working in the assists department: James Island was working as a unit and finished the game with 12 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as West Ashley only racked up three assists.

When it comes to explaining why West Ashley lost, don't look at Kendell Mack. Despite the final result, he went 11 of 25 en route to 37 points. Lavell Minus also deserves some recognition as he posted his first block of the season.

James Island pushed their record up to 14-7 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 64.0 points per game. As for West Ashley, they are on a three-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 12-9.

James Island will square off against Summerville at 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday. James Island has been getting the ball to fall more lately as they've increased their point totals each of their last three games. As for West Ashley, they will challenge Fort Dorchester at 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Fort Dorchester is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 54 points per game this season.