Basketball Game Preview: Lakewood Gators vs. South Florence Bruins

Two dominant in Darius Franklin and Jarius Davis are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Lakewood Gators will head out to square off against the South Florence Bruins at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Lakewood knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past four games -- so hopefully South Florence likes a good challenge.

Last Tuesday, Lakewood didn't have too much trouble with Darlington as they won 60-43.

Lakewood's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Andre Mcbride, who posted 12 points along with five assists and five steals. That's the most assists Mcbride has posted since back in December of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Carlos Franklin, who went 5 of 10 on his way to 15 points.

Mcbride wasn't the only one working in the assists department: Lakewood was working as a unit and finished the game with 14 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.

Meanwhile, South Florence hadn't done well against Darlington recently (they were 1-8 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. South Florence came out on top against Darlington by a score of 40-30. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Bruins.

Lakewood has also been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six matches, which provided a massive bump to their 12-8 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 61.2 points per game. As for South Florence, their record is now 11-8.

Lakewood came up short against South Florence in their previous matchup back in January, falling 55-49. Can Lakewood avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.