The Neuse Charter Cougars will face off against the Lakewood Leopards at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Neuse Charter is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 54.5 points per game this season.
It was a proper cat-fight when Neuse Charter took on Hobbton on Friday. Neuse Charter took a hard 70-54 fall against Hobbton. The Cougars have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
| 01/17/25 vs Hobbton | 9 |
| 12/26/24 vs Oxford Prep | 5 |
| 11/20/24 vs Star Christian Academy | 5 |
| 11/07/23 vs Roxboro Community | 4 |
| 11/22/24 vs Henderson Collegiate | 4 |
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the best came from Shaeem Williams, who almost dropped a double-double on 18 points and nine boards. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in rebounds. Another player making a difference was Klayton Tew, who posted 12 points and seven boards.
Even though they lost, Neuse Charter smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 13 offensive rebounds in three consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, Lakewood entered their tilt with St. Pauls on Saturday with ten consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with 11. They walked away with an 82-71 win over the Bulldogs. Given the Leopards' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 203rd, while the Bulldogs are ranked 517th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Neuse Charter better focus on containing Xavier Hall and Cameron Williams as the pair were huge in Lakewood's win. Hall dropped a double-double on 27 points and 16 rebounds, while Williams went 11 of 14 on his way to 29 points and eight boards. Hall is crushing it when it comes to rebounds: he's pulled down at least nine every time he's taken the court this season. Juan Parker Jr. was another key player, going 6 for 7 en route to 12 points along with seven boards and four steals.
Lakewood pushed their record up to 11-1 with the victory, which was their fourth straight on the road. As for Neuse Charter, their loss ended a four-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 8-8.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Neuse Charter has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 33.1 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Lakewood struggles in that department as they've been averaging 43.4 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Neuse Charter beat Lakewood 57-50 in their previous meeting back in February of 2024. Will Neuse Charter repeat their success, or does Lakewood have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
