Two dominant guards in Gavin Ward and Clayton Everett Jr are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The James Island Trojans will be playing at home against the Ashley Ridge Swamp Foxes at 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Both teams are coming into the match red-hot, with James Island sitting on seven straight wins and Ashley Ridge on three.
Last Friday, James Island blew past Fort Dorchester, posting a 68-31 victory. Given the Trojans' advantage in MaxPreps' South Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 24th, while the Patriots are ranked 120th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Gavin Ward
| 02/07/25 vs Fort Dorchester | 67% |
| 01/29/25 @ Ashley Ridge | 56% |
| 12/20/24 vs Socastee | 56% |
| 12/14/24 vs First Baptist School | 54% |
| 11/29/24 vs C.A. Johnson | 53% |
James Island had a senior duo take command as Parker Renault dropped a double-double on 16 points and 11 boards and Ward went 6 of 9 on his way to 16 points in addition to eight rebounds and five assists. The dominant performance also gave Ward a new career-high in field goal percentage (67%). Jay Morris was another key player, going 5 for 12 en route to 11 points and seven rebounds.
James Island smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 15 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 14 offensive boards in three consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Ashley Ridge hadn't done well against Summerville recently (they were 1-8 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. Ashley Ridge had just enough and edged Summerville out 52-49. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Swamp Foxes have posted since December 30, 2024.
James Island pushed their record up to 16-7 with the victory, which was their fourth straight at home. They've dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 23.5 points. As for Ashley Ridge, their win bumped their record up to 17-6.
James Island was able to grind out a solid victory over Ashley Ridge in their previous meeting two weeks ago, winning 67-60. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Everett Jr, who went 10 of 17 to rack up 36 points. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will James Island still be able to contain Everett Jr? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
