Basketball Game Preview: Morehead Panthers vs. Reidsville Rams

The Morehead Panthers will venture away from home to square off against the Reidsville Rams at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Morehead is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 56.1 points per game this season.

Last Thursday, Morehead lost to T.W. Andrews on the road by a 69-53 margin. While losing is never fun, the Panthers can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 427th, while the Red Raiders are ranked 162nd).

The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Avery Bigelow, who went 8 for 15 on his way to 17 points and seven rebounds. The contest was his third in a row with at least ten points. Josiah Thomas was another key player, dropping a double-double on 12 points and ten boards.

Meanwhile, Reidsville put another one in the bag on Thursday to keep their perfect season alive. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat West Stokes 81-42. The Rams have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won seven matchups by 20 points or more this season.

Morehead better keep an eye on Dionte Neal. He was instrumental in Reidsville's win, dropping a double-double on 20 points and ten assists. Neal has been hot for a while, having also posted two or more steals the last 41 times he's played. Another player making a difference was Kristian Scales, who shot 5-for-7 from downtown and dropped a double-double on 20 points and ten rebounds.

Reidsville pushed their record up to 12-0 with the victory, which was their 19th straight at home dating back to last season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 84.3 points per game. As for Morehead, their loss dropped their record down to 5-9.

Morehead came up short against Reidsville in their previous meeting back in February of 2024, falling 76-65. Can Morehead avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.