The Orangeburg-Wilkinson Bruins are taking a road trip to challenge the Fox Creek Predators at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Orangeburg-Wilkinson is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 54.5 points per game this season.
Orangeburg-Wilkinson is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They came out on top against Waccamaw by a score of 59-47. Given the Bruins' advantage in MaxPreps' South Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 24th, while the Warriors are ranked 103rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Keith Smith
| 02/18/25 vs Waccamaw | 18 |
| 12/28/24 vs North | 17 |
| 01/22/24 @ Gilbert | 17 |
| 12/26/23 vs Battery Creek | 17 |
| 12/21/24 vs Greenville | 16 |
Orangeburg-Wilkinson's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Keith Smith, who went 5-for-9 en route to 18 points. The dominant performance gave Smith a new career-high in points. Another player making a difference was Jordan Robins, who went 5-for-6 to rack up 11 points.
Meanwhile, Fox Creek waltzed into their matchup on Tuesday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They took their contest with ease, bagging an 88-54 win over the Hawks. The Predators have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won ten games by 20 points or more this season.
Fox Creek's win came from a few key players Orangeburg-Wilkinson will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Brelan Baskett, who dropped a double-double with 25 points and 11 boards. He continues to improve, besting his previous point total in each of the last four games he's played. Justin Vining was another key player, almost dropping a double-double with 18 points and nine assists.
Fox Creek smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 14 offensive boards in three consecutive matches.
Orangeburg-Wilkinson's victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 19-6. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 63.5 points over those games. As for Fox Creek, their record is now 18-10.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Orangeburg-Wilkinson has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 24.5 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Fox Creek struggles in that department as they've been averaging 29.2 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Orangeburg-Wilkinson beat Fox Creek 66-54 when the teams last played back in February of 2022. The rematch might be a little tougher for Orangeburg-Wilkinson since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
