Lee County & Southern Lee Meet Tuesday Night at 7:00

The Lee County Yellow Jackets will travel to Southern Lee Tuesday night for Round 1 of the cross-county rivalry matchup.  While Southern Lee leads the Tri-County 3A with a 3-0 mark through the first two weeks of play, this game shapes up as one that will be competitive and exciting for those fortunate enough to get in to see it.    Below is analysis of this Tuesday’s game and what we can expect.

Southern Lee – The Cavaliers have used big 4^th quarters to come from behind to beat Western Harnett and Triton on the road and stopped Union Pines at home.   The Cavaliers are led by senior Quashawn Williams, who should provide much-needed leadership to a young Cavalier backcourt.   Look for seniors Randall Upchurch and Georion McDougald to anchor the inside for Southern Lee and freshman Isaiah Upchurch is already making an impact.    The Cavaliers again rely on pressure defense to create turnovers and outside shooting will be key for the Cavaliers.

Lee County – The Yellow Jackets lost close games at Union Pines and at home to Triton while beating Western Harnett at home this past Friday night.   Lee County showed the effects of a 14-day quarantine early on but played their best game of the season by far on Friday against Western Harnett.   Sophomore guard Malachai McLean has led Lee County is scoring thus far, and Lee has outrebounded its last 2 opponents.   Seniors Derran McKoy and Jaylin Bristow will try to control the boards for Lee County.   Expect Charles Sanders to continue with good solid play.   Lee will need to control the turnovers against a tough Cavalier defense.

What to Watch For – Despite the difference in records, this should be a good game.   Just like all games, we will be watching the turnover, rebounding, and 3-point numbers as these are always big factors.  Below is a breakdown of what we will see Tuesday night.

Backcourt – Quashawn Williams brings the most experience in the league to the Cavalier backcourt along with a deadly 3-point shot and leadership.   His back court mates of Blake Bridges, Jeremiah Gilliard, and Isaiah Upchurch haven’t played in this rivalry game before and how they respond will be key.    Malachai McLean played in this game last year as a Lee County freshman and like Williams, will have an inexperienced group alongside in the backcourt.   McLean has the ability to penetrate along with a nice 3-point shot and a Williams-McLean matchup will be fun to watch.

Frontcourt – This past Friday night Lee County picked up 49 rebounds against Western Harnett with Derran McKoy and Jaylin Bristow collecting 18 apiece.   These two will battle with McDougald and Upchurch inside and the rebounding battle will be key.   Lee does have a little more size and bulk than the Cavaliers and both frontlines have battled some foul trouble in early games.   Aside from a team getting hot behind the arc, rebounding could affect the outcome of this one as much as anything.

How to tune in – The game will air live on WWGP Radio (95.1 FM & 1050 AM) and stream on the station’s website (www.wfjawwgpradio.com) on both WFJA & WWGP.    Because of COVID-19, schools are still in a “parents-only” mode with limited crowds of 25 that must preregister.    Join us Tuesday night for Lee County @ Southern Lee – it should be a good one!!!!!