McKenzie hasn't had much luck against Brantley recently, but that could start to change on Saturday. The McKenzie Tigers will head out on the road to face off against the Brantley Bulldogs at 4:00 p.m. After the two teams made easy work of their previous opponents, one won't be so lucky on Saturday.
McKenzie took a loss when they played away from home on Tuesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Thursday. They were the clear victor by a 77-53 margin over Red Level. Given McKenzie's advantage in MaxPreps' Alabama basketball rankings (they are ranked 178th, while Red Level is ranked 429th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
| 01/16/25 vs Red Level | 23 |
| 01/14/25 @ Georgiana | 17 |
| 01/10/25 vs Kinston | 19 |
| 01/09/25 @ Elba | 21 |
| 01/07/25 vs Brantley | 17 |
McKenzie's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Quay Jackson, who went 10 for 14 on his way to 23 points in addition to six assists and six rebounds. The match was Jackson's fifth in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Jay Jackson, who dropped a double-double on 24 points and 14 boards.
Meanwhile, Brantley entered their tilt with Elba on Thursday with two consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with three. They blew past the Tigers 73-40. The Bulldogs have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won nine contests by 28 points or more this season.
McKenzie better keep an eye on Jayden Parks. He was instrumental in Brantley's win, going 9 of 16 en route to 30 points along with six rebounds and five assists. Parks is also on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed three or more in the last four games he's played. Another player making a difference was Jon Kilcrease, who dropped a double-double on 14 points and 11 boards.
McKenzie is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven games, which provided a nice bump to their 11-4 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 60.0 points per game. As for Brantley, their win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 16-2.
McKenzie skirted past Brantley 51-48 in their previous matchup last Tuesday. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Parks, who went 8 for 19 on his way to 25 points and five rebounds. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will McKenzie still be able to contain Parks? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
