The South Aiken Thoroughbreds will head out to take on the Gray Collegiate Academy War Eagles at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. South Aiken is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 51.7 points per game this season.
South Aiken is headed into the contest out to prove that what happened against North Augusta on Tuesday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. South Aiken was beaten by North Augusta 76-48. The Thoroughbreds have struggled against the Yellow Jackets recently, as the game was their eighth consecutive lost matchup.
| 02/04/25 vs North Augusta | 16 |
| 12/03/24 @ Greenwood | 16 |
| 12/27/24 @ Richland Northeast | 10 |
| 12/17/24 vs Airport | 8 |
| 11/26/24 vs Lugoff-Elgin | 8 |
Despite the defeat, South Aiken saw an underclassman step up: sophomore David Kearse went 7 of 10 on his way to 16 points in addition to seven rebounds and three steals. That's the most points Kearse has posted since back in December of 2024. Kelton Walker was another key player, putting up six points and seven boards.
Meanwhile, Gray Collegiate Academy had already won eight in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 35.4 points) and they went ahead and made it nine on Wednesday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat the Indians 92-49. The War Eagles have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won seven games by 36 points or more this season.
Gray Collegiate Academy's win came from a few key players South Aiken will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Lamont (Lj) Britt, who dropped a double-double on 14 points and 12 rebounds. He has been hot recently, having also posted two or more steals the last four times he's played. Another player making a difference was Jayden Rowe, who went 6 for 12 en route to 18 points and three steals.
Gray Collegiate Academy smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 22 offensive boards. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 7.2 offensive rebounds per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 matchups they've averaged 10.2.
Gray Collegiate Academy's win was their fifth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 14-7. They've dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 39.2 points. As for South Aiken, their loss dropped their record down to 7-15.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: South Aiken has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 32.5 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Gray Collegiate Academy struggles in that department as they've been averaging 32 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
South Aiken was dealt a bruising 82-42 defeat at the hands of Gray Collegiate Academy in their previous meeting back in January. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Gray Collegiate Academy's Hunter Mcgraw, who went 6 of 9 on his way to 17 points along with seven assists and four steals. Now that South Aiken knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
