The Grenada Chargers came tearing into Tuesday's game with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 8.5 points) and they left with even more momentum. They came out on top in a nail-biter against South Panola and snuck past 68-66. Given Grenada's advantage in MaxPreps' Mississippi basketball rankings (they are ranked 95th, while the Tigers are ranked 237th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Grenada's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Caleb Howard led the charge by dropping a double-double on 24 points and 17 rebounds. Howard hasn't dropped below 16 points for five straight games. The team also got some help courtesy of Jarques Perry, who dropped a double-double on 16 points and 18 rebounds.
South Panola's loss came despite strong showings from Lamorris Walls and Demartric Houston. Walls scored 21 points along with two steals, while Houston dropped a double-double on 14 points and 11 rebounds. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Walls has scored all season. Lj Pope was another key contributor, scoring nine points along with five rebounds.
Even though they lost, South Panola were working as a unit and finished the game with 14 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Grenada only posted five assists.
Grenada has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven matches, which provided a massive bump to their 11-11 record this season. As for South Panola, they are on a 12-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 2-17.
Grenada and the Conquistadors will face off at 6:30 p.m. on February 1st without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. Olive Branch has been dominant on offense recently, as they've racked up an incredible 593 points over their last eight contests. As for South Panola, they will look to defend their home court on Thursday against the Mustangs at 7:30 p.m.
