Top-ranked Ridge View boys basketball rolls into 2025 state championship game
The Ridge View boys basketball team looked every bit of the team Saturday that has been atop the Class 5A rankings all season.
The Blazers used a 25-0 run in the first half on their way to a 63-43 win over James Island on Saturday in the Class 5A Division I Lower State championship game. With the win at the Florence Center, Ridge View advances to the state championship game on Friday against rival Blythewood, which rallied to beat Dorman, 46-45.
“We know the feeling of getting back in the state championship, and we worked our behinds off all season to get there,” Ridge View guard Malachi Cooper said.
It’s Ridge View’s seventh state championship appearance and second straight under Joshua Staley. The Blazers (22-7) are going for their sixth title since 2018 and enter the title game on a 16-game winning streak.
They started the season as No. 1 in the preseason S.C. Basketball Coaches Association poll and never lost that spot despite their seven losses, all to out-of-state teams.
“It is about team effort,” Staley said. “Every day we preach about team effort, and it is not about one guy. They did a good job digging on defense and playing for each other.”
The game was a rematch of last year’s state semifinal, also won in a blowout by Ridge View. But the Islanders, looking for their second state title appearance, survived the Blazers’ opening 9-0 run Saturday and Joshua Gladden cut the lead to 16-14.
That’s when the Blazers’ defense and guards Cooper and Yale Davis took. They finished the second quarter on a 25-0 run over the final six minutes of the half to lead 41-14.
Davis had 10 of his 15 points during that run, while Cooper had 15 of his game-high 21 points in the first half. The senior hit five 3-pointers in the game.
Ridge View’s defense was active during that stretch, getting in passing lanes, forcing turnovers and running out to easy baskets.
“We were really able to dig in on defense and the assistant coaches did a good job of putting together a really good scout,” Staley said. “The guys really were able to dig in and make some good effort plays.”
Parker Renault led James Island with 17 points.
This story was originally published March 1, 2025 at 4:35 PM.
