Photo by Westwood High School
By Thomas Grant Jr.
It was nearly 10 months ago when the Northeast sent three teams from two schools to Florence for the S.C. High School League state championships.
The Ridge View boys defeated Blythewood, while the Lady Bengals were victorious over Summerville as Region 5-5A swept Class 5A Division I.
As of Tuesday, both defending champions remain near the top of the S.C. High School League standings. Replacing the Blythewood boys is Westwood, which remained second in Class 5A Division II.
More important for the Redhawks is their first place standing in the region. On Tuesday, they rolled past Lugoff-Elgin 68-38 to improve to 14-1 overall, 3-0 in Region 5-5A.
Jayden Crews led Westwood with 20 points, D’Marcus Thomas and Cylan McLeod each had 15 points and five assists and Daytron Cockfield set a school record with eight blocked shots.
The Ridge View boys have kept pace in second place with three straight wins. On Tuesday, the Blazers routed West Florence 87-39 behind 18 points from R.J. Davis, 15 points by Chris Horton and 11 points each from C.J. Moore and D.J. Wylie.
In the girls’ standings, Blythewood and Ridge View are tied in the lost column heading into their Jan. 20 meeting in View County.
The Lady Bengals roared past Sumter 57-13 for their eighth straight win, fifth in region play. Ridge View is perfect so far in the new year with three straight region victories.
In SCISA, the Cardinal Newman boys will face Clear Dot at 9 a.m. to kick off the King’s Holiday Classic at C.A. Johnson High School.
S.C. BASKETBALL COACHES ASSOCIATION TOP 10 RANKINGS
CLASS 5A
(Division I)
1. Dorman, 2. Dutch Fork, 3. Ridge View, 4. Cane Bay, 5. J.F. Byrnes, 6. Ashley Ridge, 7. West Ashley, 8. Sumter, 9. Boiling Springs, 10. Spartanburg
(Division II)
1. Greenville, 2. Westwood, 3. Riverside, 4. Fort Mill, 5. Goose Creek, 6. TL Hanna, 7. St. James, 8. Irmo, 9. Nation Ford, 10. Eastside
GIRLS
(Division I)
1. J.F. Byrnes, 2. Blythewood, 3. Dorman, 4. Wando, 5. Spartanburg, 6. Mauldin, 7. Carolina Forest, 8. Dutch Fork, 9. Lexington, 10. West Ashley
