Continuing in our high school basketball previews, we will take a brief look at a few of our region 2-5A teams in the Byrnes Rebels, Dorman Cavaliers, and Boiling Springs Bulldogs.
Byrnes
The remarkable season and run to the 5A state championship game by the ‘Runnin’ Rebels’ last season was truly one of the best feel-good local sports stories of 2024. Coach Layne Fowler’s squad compiled a 26-5 overall record – including a perfect 8-0 mark in region play, en route to the region championship for the first time since 2016.
They were one of the top offensive teams in the state, averaging around 72 points per game, led by the likes of senior Guards Will Fowler (18.6 per game) and Kayzzin McDowell (12.5 ppg, 5.8 rebounds/gm) as well as junior “big” Evan Enos (9.5 pts/gm). A superb freshman talent also emerged during the 2023-2024 season in point guard Colt Fowler (8.4 pts/gm, 150 total assists).
This season, the Rebs will be replacing just 4 seniors – the aforementioned Fowler and McDowell as well as small forward Conner Page (5.5 ppg) and point guard Kanife Hill (avg 3.2 assists/gm, 2 steals per game). But Byrnes still has plenty of talent returning to the roster this season.
Colt Fowler, now with a year of varsity experience under his belt will look to build on his phenomenal freshman campaign. He will be complemented by a duo of seniors in forward Evan Enos and guard Jamari Cullen (nearly 5 ppg average last year, 54 rebounds, 21 steals). Bench player Sukhi Singh (G/F), now a junior also returns after some meaningful minutes in 2023-2024.
Byrnes is already off to a strong start to this season, sitting at 3-0 with a 93-82 win over JL Mann, an 80-53 victory over Greer, and a 68-64 decision in a close contest against Fort Mill.
Dorman
The Cavaliers did not live up to the level of expectations the recent success of the program would merit last season. That is not as much of an indictment as it sounds, as Thomas Ryan’s squad still won over 20 games, finishing 21-8 with a 5-3 mark in region 2-5A, good enough for 2nd in the standings. Ultimately, the Cavs bowed out in the quarterfinal round of the playoffs with a 58-55 loss to Mauldin.
Dorman averaged around 60 points per game in their 2023-2024 campaign, led by “The Christians” (Andrews and Gentry), Cason Gilliam, and Keenan Arcega-Whiteside. This year, they will have to replace all but one of those with Keenan being the lone returnee for his senior season.
He is not the ONLY returner. The Cavaliers feature 11 upperclassmen – including junior point guard Peden Breazeale and senior small forward Jarvis Pearson. However, many of those returners have not seen significant varsity minutes. They also got a solid transfer guard from Southside in sophomore Jaden Johnson that looks to bring a lot to the table.
Dorman is also off to a 3-0 start to the season, having defeated Rock Hill 84-49 in their opener, TL Hanna 53-50, and Cane Bay 77-60.
Boiling Springs
Last year, the Bulldogs struggled mightily for most of the season, failing to make the postseason after an 0-8 record in region 2-5A play. The Dawgs averaged 55 points per game, most of which came from one man – senior guard/forward Landon Sprouse. That isn’t to say that Boiling Springs didn’t have some nice pieces. Power forward Isaiah Atkins had his impactful moments as well as Reese Walter and Jeremiah Favorite. But, in general, their issue was youth. Landon Sprouse was the sole senior on the squad. Most everyone else were freshmen and sophomores.
That is actually the biggest positive going into this season for Craig Martin’s Bulldogs – not much roster turnover and a year of experience. They are still fairly young with only 2 seniors in Reese Walter and small forward Jymire Wright. Atkins returns as one of 4 juniors on this year’s roster that also features 6 sophomores newcomers.
In short, while Boiling Springs may be a little better with more experience, they will likely still struggle a bit with so much youth further down the depth chart. The Bulldogs have started the 2024 season with some promise at 6-1, having won the Rippy’s Tip-Off Classic in Union. They have victories over Strom Thurmond, Catawba Ridge (which is noteworthy), High Point, Union, Fountain Inn, and Hillcrest. Their lone loss was to Woodmont (71-66).
