Region Play Week 3: Byrnes vs Gaffney & Westside vs Easley

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another packed week of High School Basketball in the State of South Carolina! This week I was in Duncan, South Carolina for a meeting at the top of Class AAAAA Region 2, and in Anderson, South Carolina for a rivalry game between two Class AAAA Region 1. <strong>Take a look at a recap for those two games: </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Final Scores:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Byrnes 93, Gaffney 66</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Westside 70, Easley 58</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Notable Performers: </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1266488' first='Evan' last='Enos'] - 27 Points &amp; 6 Rebounds on 7-9 3FG</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2293475,"width":"426px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-9-23-at-9.57-PM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-9-23-at-9.57-PM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2293475" style="width:426px;height:auto" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1032164' first='Will' last='Fowler'] - 18 Points, 6 Rebounds, &amp; 3 Assists</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2293476,"width":"423px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-9-23-at-9.59-PM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-9-23-at-9.59-PM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2293476" style="width:423px;height:auto" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1678545' first='Kayzzin' last='McDowell'] - 11 Points, 6 Rebounds, &amp; 6 Assists</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2293474,"width":"422px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-9-23-at-9.55-PM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-9-23-at-9.55-PM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2293474" style="width:422px;height:auto" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1692195' first='Markell' last='Hollis'] - 33 Points</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2331330,"width":"425px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/01/Image-1-24-24-at-4.10-PM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/01/Image-1-24-24-at-4.10-PM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2331330" style="width:425px;height:auto" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1489156' first='Rickey' last='Littlejohn III'] - 11 Points, 4 Rebounds, &amp; 5 Assists</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2331328,"width":"426px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/01/Image-1-24-24-at-4.11-PM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/01/Image-1-24-24-at-4.11-PM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2331328" style="width:426px;height:auto" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1258300' first='Josh' last='Williams'] - 19 Points on 7-11 FG &amp; 5 Steals</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2308619,"width":"425px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-29-23-at-9.17-AM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-29-23-at-9.17-AM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2308619" style="width:425px;height:auto" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1423863' first='Zeke' last='Marshall'] - 14 Points &amp; 5 Rebounds</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2308616,"width":"425px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-29-23-at-9.18-AM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-29-23-at-9.18-AM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2308616" style="width:425px;height:auto" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2314644' first='Kmajay' last='Jenkins']</strong> - 11 Points, 9 Rebounds, &amp; 8 Assists</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2332883,"width":"426px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/01/Image-1-26-24-at-10.52-PM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/01/Image-1-26-24-at-10.52-PM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2332883" style="width:426px;height:auto" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1986981' first='Dreyton' last='Jackson'] - 18 Points, 4 Rebounds, 7 Assists, &amp; 4 Steals</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2281085,"width":"425px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/11/Image-11-24-23-at-10.49-PM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/11/Image-11-24-23-at-10.49-PM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2281085" style="width:425px;height:auto" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ethan Crews - 17 Points</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2281086,"width":"423px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/11/Image-11-24-23-at-10.50-PM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/11/Image-11-24-23-at-10.50-PM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2281086" style="width:423px;height:auto" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1986980' first='RJ' last='Stack'] - 8 Points &amp; 5 Rebounds</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2281090,"width":"424px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/11/Image-11-24-23-at-10.52-PM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/11/Image-11-24-23-at-10.52-PM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2281090" style="width:424px;height:auto" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Byrnes Rout Gaffney To Take Full Control of Class AAAAA Region 2</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Coming into the night, there were two undefeated teams in Class AAAAA Region 2, and neither of them was the defending State Champion Dorman. Those two teams were Byrnes and Gaffney, who both beat the Cavaliers in the last week, and they meet for the first time on Tuesday Night. The Rebels had a good start to the game, including getting 10 points from [player_tooltip player_id='1266488' first='Evan' last='Enos'] and 8 points from [player_tooltip player_id='1032164' first='Will' last='Fowler'] in the first quarter, but a 15-0 run in the first 4 minutes of the second quarter gave them a stranglehold on the Indians. The scoring from Fowler and shooting from Enos continued during that run, but the facilitating and playmaking of [player_tooltip player_id='1678545' first='Kayzzin' last='McDowell'] and Kanife Hill were just as important to their success. Hill finished the night with 8 assists while McDowell finished with 11 points to go with his 6 assists. Gaffney's [player_tooltip player_id='1692195' first='Markell' last='Hollis'] had an offensive explosion in the second half, but the Indians weren't able to ever make it a close call down the stretch. Hollis scored 27 points in the half in what was a high-volume scoring exhibition. Hollis, along with Freshman Guard Rickey Littlejohn who had an up-and-down game, were some of the keys to Gaffney's success in region play so far. However, the lasting theme from tonight's game was Byrnes' multitude of scoring options - in particular Enos who had one of the best shooting performances I have seen all season long putting up 27 points on 7-9 shooting from behind the arc. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Freshman Impress As Westside Defeat Easley</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Both Westside and Easley came into the night with hopes of a win to stay within reach of the 1 Seed in Class AAAAA Region 1. The Green Wave's first two field goals came off baseline-out-of-bounds sets but the Rams had a couple of quick answers. Neither team was able to create much separation in the first quarter and Easley was unable to capitalize on a 3:00 Westside scoring drought to start the second quarter. The Rams offense started to click into gear after [player_tooltip player_id='1423863' first='Zeke' last='Marshall']'s high-flying slam added some life to the home crowd. Starting in that period, they did a much better job of breaking down the Green Wave's 2-3 zone, with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2314644' first='Kmajay' last='Jenkins']</strong> frequently popping to the free throw line and making an incisive pass to baseline cutters. For Easley, [player_tooltip player_id='1986981' first='Dreyton' last='Jackson'] was terrific on the night. His ability to make reads, score the ball, and create turnovers on the defensive end was on full display. One of their favorite actions is a Read DHO where Jackson will evaluate the defensive coverage and hand it off to a curling wing or keep it for an open layup. At the start of the third quarter, Ethan Crews scored 10 points in the first 3:20 of the half to help cut an 8-point lead to 1. But again, the Rams answered to reestablish some control of the game. Jenkins was superb again that stretch, scoring 4 points out of an 8-0 Westside run. The lead stayed at a comfortable margin for the Rams for the rest of the game, as they moved to 5-1 in Region 2 only behind the undefeated Greenville Red Raiders. [player_tooltip player_id='1258300' first='Josh' last='Williams'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1423863' first='Zeke' last='Marshall'], who are each ranked in their classes Top-50 and are also a stellar duo on the football field, had a great night scoring the ball with 19 &amp; 14 respectively. Freshman <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2314644' first='Kmajay' last='Jenkins']</strong> also had an impressive night with a near triple-double of 11 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 assists. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->