Two dominant guards in Trey Vann and Gavin Johnson are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Jellico Blue Devils will be home for the holidays to greet the Oliver Springs Bobcats at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. One thing working in Jellico's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last four games.
Jellico will bounce into Thursday's matchup after beating Harriman, who they had gone 0-3 against in their three prior meetings. Jellico escaped with a win on Friday against Harriman by the margin of a single free throw, 75-74.
| 11/25/23 vs University School of Jackson | 16 |
| 12/13/24 @ Harriman | 21 |
| 11/29/24 vs Smith County | 17 |
| 12/06/24 vs Pickett County | 11 |
| 02/08/24 @ Coalfield | 10 |
Jellico's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Dre Webb led the charge by going 7 of 13 on his way to 21 points and five steals. Those 21 points gave Webb a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Noah Reed, who dropped a double-double on 14 points and ten boards.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Oliver Springs, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Friday. They walked away with a 54-43 win over Sunbright on Tuesday.
Oliver Springs' win came from a few key players Jellico will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Zachary Hamby, who went 5 of 7 on his way to 11 points in addition to six boards and four steals. He has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last three times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Johnson, who went 6 of 15 on his way to 18 points and six rebounds.
Jellico pushed their record up to 5-4 with the victory, which was their third straight on the road. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 79.3 points per game. As for Oliver Springs, they now also have a winning record of 5-4.
Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as Jellico and Oliver Springs are some of the highest scoring teams in the league. Jellico hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 66.8 points per game. However, it's not like Oliver Springs struggles in that department as they've been averaging 55.3 points. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can run the score up higher.
Jellico was able to grind out a solid win over Oliver Springs when the teams last played back in February, winning 73-63. Will Jellico repeat their success, or does Oliver Springs have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
