The Point Pleasant Big Blacks scored the most points they've had all season to find success on Tuesday. They walked away with a 61-54 win over Ripley. The win was all the more spectacular given Point Pleasant's disadvantage in MaxPreps' West Virginia basketball rankings (they are ranked 525th, while Ripley is ranked 59th).
Josh Chapman was his usual excellent self, dropping a double-double on 20 points and 12 rebounds. He also grabbed two steals for the first time this season. Trevon McMillan was another key contributor, scoring 15 points along with three steals.
Defeat or not, Ripley got some senior leadership from Cade Goode who scored 22 points along with three steals and Garrett Rhodes who dropped a double-double on 14 points and ten rebounds. Goode scored a full 40.7% of Ripley's points, the fourth time in a row he's earned more than a third of the team's points.
Point Pleasant's victory was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 3-2. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 62.8 points per game. As for Ripley, their defeat ended a four-game streak of away wins dating back to last season and brought them to 3-2.
Point Pleasant will have some time to savor their win since their next game is a little ways off: they'll take on Riverside at 7:00 p.m. on December 29, 2023. Ripley will be home for the holidays to greet Lincoln at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.
