Cary Academy/Southern Wake Academy Recap/Notes

<!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">The Cary Academy Chargers kicked their season off against the Southern Wake Academy Lions on Wednesday night in a back-and-forth battle. Take a look at the game recap and standouts from the results.</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>There's no better time to sign up for PrepHoopsNC! Get&nbsp;30% OFF payment&nbsp;on your first billing cycle with offer code:&nbsp;<strong>JAYANDERSON30</strong>, sign up&nbsp;<a href="https://prephoops.com/subscribe" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong>TODAY</strong></a>!</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It looked like Southern Wake Academy would run away with things in the early going as an early barrage of 3-pointers and nine points from unsigned senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1385670' first='Chris' last='Crudup'] put things at 10-5 with 3:10 remaining in the quarter but Cary Academy would keep it close thanks to the exploits of 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='2055526' first='Aidan' last='Rousseau']. [player_tooltip player_id='1086990' first='Alex' last='Rechetnikov'] showed off his prowess from the perimeter with two 3-pointers as well. After 1, SWA led 14-10. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rousseau woke up the offense for the Chargers a lot more in the second quarter as Brown commit [player_tooltip player_id='1076331' first='Wyatt' last='DeGraaf'] found his stride in the paint with a few dunks and finishes. It looked like things would be all tied up at 27 at the half but a timely 3-pointer from SWA's [player_tooltip player_id='2123684' first='Se' last='Surmons'] would give the Lions a 3-point edge at the half, 30-27.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Things would turn into a defensive battle in the third quarter as both teams turned things up a few notches. 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='2055527' first='McCoy' last='Williams'] found his offense though, as he scored five points in the quarter. CA would fight back to take a 42-40 lead before the quarter ended but SWA answered right back before the buzzer to tie things up at 42 after three quarters. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The momentum shifted in the final frame following a technical foul on a dunk from 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1761257' first='Jalen' last='Sheppard'] that initially put SWA up 46-44. The offense seemed to sputter for SWA after the mishap. CA would knock down the technical free throws then [player_tooltip player_id='2055527' first='McCoy' last='Williams'] knocked down a 3-pointer to give them a 47-46 lead. A pair of 3-pointers from [player_tooltip player_id='2148143' first='Preston' last='Moore'] would give CA their largest lead of the night, 55-48, as the Chargers started to pull away following the momentum shift. A dunk from [player_tooltip player_id='1076331' first='Wyatt' last='DeGraaf'] would seal things for the Chargers as they won going away, 61-55.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2055526"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Rousseau was the leading scorer for CA when it was all said and done with 16 points, 13 in the first half. He showed off his ability to attack the paint and be aggressive around the painted area when given opportunities. He's a young name to track in North Carolina's 2026 class.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["2148143"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"Moore made quite the impression in his high school debut with CA, leading the charge for them in their late push for the lead with some timely shots on the perimeter. He knocked down three 3-pointers and finished with 14 points while running the show at the point guard spot. He's got a bright future in the 2027 class.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["1076331"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"DeGraaf showed his continued development around the rim as a patient finisher in the painted area. He had a number of big dunks and big plays in the paint to turn the tide and make his presence felt in the CA frontcourt all game long. He finished with 12 points.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["1086990"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"Rechetnikov was dialed in on the perimeter for SWA as he paced their offensive attack with 16 points on five made 3-pointers. As he finds his stride and ways to be effective, look for the underrated shooter to find his confidence in leading the way for this squad.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["1385670"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"Crudup was right behind Rechetnikov in the scoring column, finishing with 12 points, though down the stretch, things slowed for him. He opened things up with nine points but the CA defense was able to fluster him enough. He'll look to get back to working his mid-range game and make things easier for himself as a lengthy scoring guard.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":5,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-654c655adb1bd"} /-->