Basketball Game Preview: Cleveland Rams vs. South Garner Titans

Cleveland and South Garner are an even 3-3 against one another since January of 2022, but not for long. The Cleveland Rams will look to defend their home court on Friday against the South Garner Titans at 5:30 p.m. Cleveland has a tough task ahead: they'll enter the contest with three straight losses, while South Garner will come in with three straight wins.

On Monday, Cleveland ended up a good deal behind Southeast Raleigh and lost 56-42. While losing is never fun, the Rams can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 262nd, while the Bulldogs are ranked 30th).

Despite the defeat, Cleveland saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Angelia Dunn went 10 of 25 on her way to 25 points and five steals. With that strong performance, Dunn is now averaging an impressive 15.8 points per game. The team also got some help courtesy of Izzy Sholar, who posted five points along with 12 boards and four steals.

Meanwhile, South Garner hadn't done well against Corinth Holders recently (they were 0-8 in their previous eight matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Tuesday. South Garner took their matchup with ease, bagging a 66-34 victory over Corinth Holders. The Titans have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won four games by 32 points or more this season.

South Garner pushed their record up to 8-5 with the win, which was their third straight at home. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 62.3 points per game. As for Cleveland, they now have a losing record at 6-7.

Things could have been worse for Cleveland, but things could have been a whole lot better as they took a 71-52 loss to South Garner in their previous meeting back in February of 2024. Can Cleveland avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.