Two dominant players in Aijah Manning and Zaria Wilson are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Locust Grove Wildcats will head out on the road to face off against the Mary Persons Bulldogs at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Locust Grove will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps Georgia Rankings (they are ranked 324th, while Mary Persons is ranked 119th).
Locust Grove's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Tuesday after their third straight loss. They were beaten by Union Grove 69-18. Locust Grove was in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 39-8.
Mary Persons has made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won three games by 32 points or more this season. They blew past Crisp County 68-20 on the road. Mary Persons' offense stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most points they've scored all season.
Mary Persons' win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Wilson, who scored 18 points along with seven steals. That makes it four consecutive games in which Wilson has scored at least 25% of Mary Persons' points. The team also got some help courtesy of Anaja Lucear, who scored 13 points along with five steals and three blocks.
Locust Grove has not been sharp recently, as they've lost four of their last five matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 3-6 record this season. As for Mary Persons, the victory makes it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 8-2.
Locust Grove came up short against Mary Persons in their previous meeting back in January, falling 51-39. Can Locust Grove avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
