Riverside HS vs. Travelers Rest HS

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While region play takes up the lion's share of a team's schedule around this time of the year, a pair of teams from the Upstate put their slate of matchups against region opponents to get reacquainted from earlier in the season.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Those two teams were Riverside, a 4A assembling and Travelers Rest, a 3A squad. The Warriors girls, prior to the boys' tip, already earned a victory over the Devildogs and the boys team made it a clean sweep among the varsity set with the final count being 56-47.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The victory for Riverside improved its record to 11-12 while Travelers Rest fell to 16-8.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Jan. 17</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Riverside also got the better of Travelers Rest when the two teams exchanged pleasantries a few weeks ago on the Warriors' home court. Riverside sent its fans and students home happy by virtue of a 61-51 triumph over the Devildogs.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>New Classes</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Both schools entered the 2022-23 year as playing in new classifications as opposed to the last few years. Riverside was a 5A team last season and now is competing at the 4A level. As for Travelers Rest, they were a 4A from last season but dropped down to 3A.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>How Things Progressed</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Early on, it did indeed appear as if the Warriors would go 2-0 against the Devildogs this season. Riverside used efficiency in moving the ball as an element to an early 9-3 run before Travelers Rest trimmed its deficit to one (11-10). With one quarter in the books, the Warriors held on by the slimmest of margins at 13-12.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Riverside managed to push its lead back up in the second quarter as the team outscored Travelers Rest by a margin 16-10 that frame. The Warriors went into halftime leading by a score of 29-22.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Things went auspiciously for the Devildogs in the third quarter as they began the period with a 6-0 run and managed to pull ahead of the Warriors. It would be Travelers Rest that assumed a lead after the third quarter, but it was a one-point, 37-36 advantage.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Warriors closed strong in the final eight minutes by outscoring the Devildogs by a margin of 20-10. Riverside's final margin of victory would be nine and the Warriors have now seen the win column in three of its last four games. The game also snapped a four-game winning streak for Travelers Rest.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Primetime Performers</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1779742,"width":372,"height":244,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/IMG_0393-crop-1833x1204-1675429510.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/IMG_0393-crop-1833x1204-1675429510.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1779742" width="372" height="244" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With 21 points, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1172765' first='Julen' last='Iturbe']</strong> was the leading scorer for the Warriors. He is listed at 6-foot-6 on Riverside's roster, but has plenty of skills indicative of guards – including ball handling and 3-point shooting accuracy. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1779744,"width":375,"height":246,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/IMG_0327-crop-2431x1596-1675429726.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/IMG_0327-crop-2431x1596-1675429726.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1779744" width="375" height="246" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Mikey Williams</strong> <strong>Jr</strong>. aided the Riverside cause with a 13-point performance. Williams was an effective runner at point for the Warriors and is unafraid to draw contact that can place him at the free throw line. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1779746,"width":371,"height":243,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/IMG_0364-crop-1833x1204-1675429916.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/IMG_0364-crop-1833x1204-1675429916.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1779746" width="371" height="243" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1578660' first='Rylan' last='Jones']</strong> was also a top performer for Riverside on Thursday evening. He finished with 10 points. Two of the seven triples that the Warriors splashed home for the game departed from Jones' hands. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1779748,"width":376,"height":247,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/IMG_0231-crop-1935x1271-1675430047.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/IMG_0231-crop-1935x1271-1675430047.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1779748" width="376" height="247" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With an 18-point outing, the Devildogs were paced by the play of senior guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='865328' first='Caleb' last='Mills']</strong>. Included in his offensive performance was connecting on four of the six 3-pointers that Travelers Rest made for the game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Up Next…</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Both teams will resume region play on Tuesday. The Warriors will be on the road at Wade Hampton before finishing the season at home against Greer on Feb. 10. As for the Devildogs, they will close their season hosting defending 3A champion Blue Ridge.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->