Basketball Recap: Independence Drops Season-High Score on Fauquier

Independence

Team Score

12/27/24 vs Fauquier	68
12/04/24 vs John Champe	61
12/18/24 vs Gainesville	60
12/10/24 vs Loudoun County	58
12/02/24 vs Battlefield	56

Winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Independence). They came out on top in a nail-biter against the Fauquier Falcons on Friday, sneaking past 68-66. The win was all the more spectacular given Independence's disadvantage in MaxPreps' Virginia basketball rankings (they are ranked 330th, while Fauquier is ranked 100th).

Independence was led to victory by Dantrell Ward and Christian Ratliff. Ward went 5 of 9 en route to 18 points and six rebounds, while Ratliff went 7 of 12 on his way to 19 points. The dominant performance gave Ratliff a new career-high in points. The team also got some help courtesy of Ian Grimes, who posted six points and six rebounds.

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

Independence moved to 2-7 with that victory, which also ended their six-game losing streak. As for Fauquier, their loss dropped their record down to 5-2.

Independence didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next game, a 55-53 defeat against Eastern View on the 28th. As for Fauquier, they also wasted no time getting back out on the court and have already played their next contest, a 62-43 win against Louisa County on the 28th.