Basketball Game Preview: East Laurens Falcons vs. Southwest Patriots

East Laurens is 2-7 against Southwest since December of 2016 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The East Laurens Falcons will challenge the Southwest Patriots at 5:30 p.m. East Laurens knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past nine contests -- so hopefully Southwest likes a good challenge.

East Laurens will bounce into Friday's match after beating Washington County, who they had gone 2-7 against in their nine prior meetings. East Laurens managed a 61-55 victory over Washington County on Wednesday. Given the Falcons' advantage in MaxPreps' Georgia basketball rankings (they are ranked 125th, while the Golden Hawks are ranked 338th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Tylan Snead

Points

02/12/25 vs Washington County	18
02/07/25 @ Treutlen	20
02/06/25 @ Washington County	20
02/04/25 @ Dodge County	31
01/28/25 vs Washington County	32
+ 2 more games

East Laurens had a senior duo take command as Tylan Snead dropped a double-double with 18 points and ten boards and Rashund Washington Jr. dropped a double-double with 17 points and ten rebounds. Snead's evening made it seven games in a row in which he has scored at least 18 points. Skyler Snead was another key player, putting up ten points.

East Laurens smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive rebounds. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Washington County only pulled down seven offensive boards.

Meanwhile, Southwest waltzed into their game on Friday with six straight wins... but they left with seven. They claimed a resounding 80-45 win over the Raiders. The Patriots have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won eight contests by 21 points or more this season.

Southwest's win came from a few key players East Laurens will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was C.J. Howard, who went 7-for-10 to rack up 18 points and three steals. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in field goal percentage (70%). Another player making a difference was Brandon Ashley, who went 6-for-15 on his way to 20 points.

East Laurens pushed their record up to 17-5 with the victory, which was their 18th straight at home dating back to last season. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 69.4 points over those games. As for Southwest, their win bumped their record up to 21-2.

East Laurens came up short against Southwest when the teams last played back in December of 2024, falling 76-71. Can East Laurens avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.