Basketball Game Preview: Blue Ridge Fighting Tigers vs. Travelers Rest Devildogs

The Blue Ridge Fighting Tigers will face off against the Travelers Rest Devildogs at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Blue Ridge knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past five matches -- so hopefully Travelers Rest likes a good challenge.

Blue Ridge is probably headed into the game with a chip on their shoulder considering Daniel just ended the team's four-game winning streak on Friday. They fell 62-55 to the Lions. While losing is never fun, the Fighting Tigers can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' South Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 145th, while the Lions are ranked 49th).

Despite the loss, Blue Ridge got top-tier performance from Ty'Korian Campbell, who dropped a double-double on 18 points and 12 boards. Campbell's evening made it five games in a row in which he has scored at least ten points. Paul Bishop was another key player, putting up 13 points and five rebounds.

Even though they lost, Blue Ridge smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in ten consecutive contests.

Meanwhile, Travelers Rest was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their third straight defeat. They took a 66-58 hit to the loss column at the hands of Seneca.

Blue Ridge's loss was their first in the region, dropping their region record down to 4-1 and their overall record down to 8-11. As for Travelers Rest, their defeat dropped their record down to 4-14.

Everything went Blue Ridge's way against Travelers Rest when the teams last played on January 3rd, as Blue Ridge made off with a 65-40 win. Does Blue Ridge have another victory up their sleeve, or will Travelers Rest turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.