Union Pines has enjoyed the comforts of home their last six games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will challenge the Richmond Raiders at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the pair posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Last Friday, even if it wasn't a dominant performance, Union Pines beat the Fighting Scots 60-55.
Trent Hilburn continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, dropping a double-double on 16 points and 12 rebounds. He hasn't dropped below 16 points for three straight games. Zion Kiser was another key contributor, scoring 13 points along with two steals.
Meanwhile, Richmond waltzed into their matchup on Tuesday with seven straight wins but they left with eight. They took down Pinecrest 83-68. Given Richmond's advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 27th, while the Patriots are ranked 204th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
It was another big night for Paul McNeil Jr., who scored 34 points along with five rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of JV Drake, who scored 18 points along with five steals.
Union Pines now has a winning record of 10-9. As for Richmond, they pushed their record up to 15-5 with that win, which was their fifth straight on the road.
Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as the pair are some of the highest scoring teams in the league. Union Pines hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 64.8 points per game. However, it's not like Richmond struggles in that department as they've been averaging 77.2 points per game. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can run the score up higher.
Union Pines took a serious blow against the Raiders in their previous meeting back in January, falling 75-47. Can Union Pines avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
