Basketball Game Preview: Union Pines Vikings vs. Pinecrest Patriots

Union Pines hasn't had much luck against Pinecrest recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Union Pines Vikings will challenge the Pinecrest Patriots at 7:30 p.m. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.

Union Pines can't be too worried about heading out to take on Pinecrest: they just beat Southern Lee at home, who had been dominant on their own court up to that point. Union Pines secured a 77-71 W over Southern Lee on Tuesday. That's two games straight that the Vikings have won by exactly six points.

Union Pines can attribute much of their success to Jaylen Kyle, who went 6 of 14 en route to 19 points and three steals, and Aiden Leonard, who posted 17 points and five boards. That's the most points Leonard has posted since back in December of 2023. Kolby Scruton was another key player, going 5 for 11 on his way to 11 points.

Meanwhile, Pinecrest entered their tilt with Hoke County on Tuesday with three consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with four. They managed a 59-55 victory over the Bucks. Given the Patriots' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 131st, while the Bucks are ranked 318th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Pinecrest pushed their record up to 11-4 with the win, which was their third straight on the road. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 60.7 points per game. As for Union Pines, they are on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last ten matches, which provided a nice bump to their 11-5 record this season.

Things could have been worse for Union Pines, but things could have been a whole lot better as they took a 78-64 loss to Pinecrest in their previous matchup back in February of 2024. Thankfully for Union Pines, Azir Gillespie (who went 8 of 12 en route to 17 points along with six rebounds and three steals) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.