Fox Creek HS vs Strom Thurmond HS

The second and third-place teams in Region 5-AAA got together at Strom Thurmond HS on Wednesday night in what turned out to be a fiercely competitive contest. The Rebels ensured fans sporting its red, white and navy blue colors had smiles on their faces when the game clock reached triple zeroes in the fourth quarter as Strom Thurmond defeated Fox Creek with the final score being 47-39. Prep Girls Hoops was on hand in Johnston for Wednesday night’s matchup between the two Region 3A foes. Here are a number of notes to remember from the game. <em><strong>Makeover</strong></em> We know when we were on hand at Strom Thurmond HS this time that this did not look exactly like the same gym we saw when we attended a game last season between the Rebels and Orangeburg-Wilkinson. There is a reason for that – the school recently underwent a massive renovation project – with a new basketball gym as part of the new and updated Strom Thurmond HS. This is the first season that gym is being used at Strom Thurmond HS – a gym that is certainly larger, more spacious and more modern than the Rebels’ previous digs. <em><strong>Remember What Happened Last Time?</strong></em> Wednesday night’s contest between the Predators and Rebels was a rematch of a previous matchup that took place between the two in late January. That game emanated from Fox Creek HS and was a bit more defensively-based than when the two teams met at Strom Thurmond HS, new look and all. The Rebels got the better of the Predators that game as well with the final score being 29-26. <em><strong>All Good Things Must Come to An End…</strong></em> Something had to give on Wednesday night between the Predators and Rebels. Both teams were riding winning streak heading into play that night. The Rebels had won five consecutive games going into the game while the Predators were winners of their last three games. In Strom Thurmond’s case, remove the last team that did put a blemish on the Rebels’ 2021-22, the region-leading Bruins of Orangeburg-Wilkinson and Strom Thurmond has not dropped a game against an in-state opponent since December 10 when the Rebels got the less desirable end of a 42-37 decision to defending 2A state champion Saluda. Remove the Bruins and Rebels as opponents for Fox Creek and the last time the Predators appeared in the loss column was also courtesy of Saluda – a 51-33 result in mid-December. <em><strong>Primetime Performers</strong></em> <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/IMG_7397-scaled-crop-1785x1172-1643872678.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-383758" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/IMG_7397-scaled-crop-1785x1172-1643872678-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="173108" first="Talayah" last="Hamilton"]</strong> (2022) led the scoring charge for the Rebels with 11 points. Nine of those 11 occurred in the first half and among those nine was a made 3-pointer. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/IMG_7375-scaled-crop-1350x887-1643872785.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-383760" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/IMG_7375-scaled-crop-1350x887-1643872785-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="216955" first="Katlyn" last="Chinn"]</strong> (2024) added 10 points and eight of hers occurred in the third quarter. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/IMG_7339-scaled-crop-2048x1345-1643872911.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-383762" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/IMG_7339-scaled-crop-2048x1345-1643872911-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="241662" first="Deondra" last="Jones"]</strong> (2022) contributed nine points. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/IMG_7364-scaled-crop-1350x887-1643873044.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-383764" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/IMG_7364-scaled-crop-1350x887-1643873044-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> For Fox Creek, <strong>Kourtnie Holmes </strong>(2022) led its scoring effort with 12 points. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/IMG_7386-scaled-crop-1644x1079-1643873216.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-383766" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/IMG_7386-scaled-crop-1644x1079-1643873216-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> <strong>Phebe Nevils</strong> (2022) finished with 10 and among those were eight second half scores. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/IMG_7355-scaled-crop-1650x1084-1643873309.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-383768" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/IMG_7355-scaled-crop-1650x1084-1643873309-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="305000" first="Madison" last="McCain"]</strong> (2025) had nine – which included seven made free throws. <em><strong>Records</strong></em> The Rebels’ record improves to 14-5 and 7-1 in region play. The Predators now have a 15-10 mark along with a 5-3 showing against regional opponents. <em><strong>Up Next</strong></em> Both teams are on the road on Friday evening. The Rebels will travel to take on the Bruins while the Predators will head to Swansea.