Ridge View vs. Blythewood, plus other storylines for 2025 SC basketball championships
Playing your rival school for a state championship is a rarity in South Carolina high school sports, but it will happen Friday night.
Richland 2 schools Ridge View and Blythewood, separated by just eight miles, will play for the Class 5A Division I Boys Basketball championship at 8 p.m. Friday at the Florence Center.
“Ridge View is a great program and to play them for a third time is something that we want to do,” Blythewood coach Zeke Washington said after the Bengals’ 46-45 win over Dorman in the semifinals. “It is great for Northeast Columbia and testament to District 2. It speaks a lot about our area.”
“It is really, good for the kids. Really good for the community and I hope we have a packed house Friday night,” Ridge View coach Joshua Staley said.
The championship matchup is something that won’t happen next year and it is a part of a small quirk with the S.C. High School League realignment for 2024-26. Class 5A is split in two divisions with Division I being the highest classification based on enrollment.
Ridge View is making the jump back to Class 5A this year and is in the Lower State bracket, but will be in Upper State next year with Blythewood. Under the realignment agreement, RV and Spring Valley are in Lower State this year with Lexington and River Bluff in the Upper State. The schools will flip-flop next season.
Ridge View and Blythewood have had their share of off-the-field issues against each other regarding football recruiting in the last few years, but their basketball relationship has been pretty calm.
Ridge View has dominated the series with the Bengals recently as it has ascended to one of the top boys basketball programs in the state. The Blazers are going after their sixth state championship since 2018 and have won 15 straight against Blythewood, including two this year in the final week of the regular season last month.
Blythewood’s last win over RV was on Nov. 28, 2017 when it won, 75-56.
“It is going to be fun. They beat us the last couple times. And we are going to go out and compete with them and try to win this thing,” Blythewood guard TJ Lewis said. “We have to be more disciplined. We haven’t played our best against them either time. If we are more disciplined, listen to coach Washington, stop following our own game plan. We will win.”
Despite the success over their rivals and winning twice this season, Staley said he is preparing his team as if they never have faced the Bengals before.
“You don’t want to look at what happened in the regular season because that is how you get set up if you are looking at the candy,” Staley said. “You got to focus on what is ahead of you. And what is ahead of us is a team that made to the state championship that no one thought they could make it.
“Coach Washington and his staff have done a super great job. We aren’t taking them for granted.”
Lewis, who has a pair of 40-point games this season, has been one of the best players in the area this season and hit the game-tying 3-pointer and go-ahead free throw in Blythewood’s 46-45 come-from-behind win over Dorman. The Bengals finished the game on a 13-1 run.
The Blazers shut down Lewis in the second meeting, holding him to just 11 points.
Ridge View likely will have star Korie Corbett get first shot of guarding Lewis. Corbett is part of a talented backcourt, which also includes starters Yale Davis and Malachi Cooper. The Blazers haven’t lost to an in-state school all season and come into the game with a 16-game winning streak.
In addition to RV and Blythewood, here are other story lines to watch for next three days:
Blythewood girls headlines first-time teams
The Blythewood girls will join the boys in the championship, taking on Summerville in the Class 5A Division I game at 6 p.m. Friday.
It will be the Bengals’ first championship appearance and comes three years after the team went 0-19. Blythewood has a talented 1-2 duo in Chase Thomas and India Williams.
Summerville got a bye into the title game when Ashley Ridge, its semifinal opponent, was disqualified from the playoffs from the use of an ineligible player.
Both Walhalla and Dillon girls are making their first championship appearances when they meet in the Class 3A game on Thursday. Walhalla is looking for its first team title in any sport since 1952.
Berkeley girls also are making their first state championship appearance and will face Greenwood in the 5A Division II title game. Greenwood is looking for its first title in 30 years.
Keenan goes for perfect 10
The Keenan boys will look to add another title to its rich tradition when they face Powdersville in the Class 3A championship on Thursday.
The Raiders are going after their 10th state championship, which would tie them with Calhoun County for second place for the most boys titles in the state, regardless of classifications. Great Falls has the most with 11 championships.
Eau Claire girls look for upset of Volunteers
It has been a special season for the Eau Claire girls basketball team, which will be playing in its first championship game since 1998.
The Shamrocks haven’t won a title since 1993 and will look to upset top-ranked and defending state champion Andrew Jackson in the the 2A game on Saturday.
Andrew Jackson has been one of the most dominant teams in any class this year and averaging 98.3 points over its last three games.
“They have been putting up 90-something points on other teams,” Eau Claire coach Ashley Gilmore said Tuesday. “But the Lady Shamrocks are coming to play Lady Shamrock basketball. We are going to be disciplined and we are going to see what the outcome may be.”
North Augusta looks for sweep
Like Blythewood, North Augusta will have both of its teams playing for Class 4A state championships.
North Augusta girls will play Westside while the boys face Lancaster. The NA girls are playing in their sixth championship game in last nine seasons while the boys are in its first title game.
Both NA and Lancaster boys have never won a state title.
Private school-charter battle
Private and charter schools have dominated the lower classifications in recent years and two of them will face off in the Class 2A boys game on Saturday when High Point Academy and Atlantic Collegiate meet.
HPA, a private school in Spartanburg, won a title in Class A and moved up from Class A to 2A this year. The Grizzlies are coached by Lee Sartor, who was Zion Williamson’s head coach in high school at Spartanburg Day.
Atlantic Collegiate, a public charter school in Conway, opened last year and this is the first year the Armada is eligible for the postseason.
Final ride for Denmark-Olar’s Davis
Thursday’s Class A boys championship game will be the last for Denmark-Olar coach Hercules Davis, who is retiring at the end of the year.
D-O is making its first championship appearance since 1990 and will face Abbeville on Thursday.
Davis, the father of South Carolina guard Zachary Davis, is in in his second stint at Denmark-Olar coach.
Championship Schedule
At Florence Center
——Thursday, March 6——
Class A girls championship: Military Magnet vs. Lee Central, 2 p.m.
Class A boys championship: Denmark-Olar vs. Abbeville, 4 p.m.
Class 3A girls championship: Dillon vs. Walhalla, 6 p.m.
Class 3A boys championship: Keenan vs. Powdersville, 8 p.m.
——Friday, March 7 ——
Class 4A girls championship: North Augusta vs. Westside, 2 p.m.
Class 4A boys championship: North Augusta vs. Lancaster, 4 p.m.
Class 5A Division I girls championship: Summerville vs. Blythewood, 6 p.m.
Class 5A Division I boys championship: Ridge View vs. Blythewood, 8 p.m.
——Saturday, March 8——
Class 2A girls championship: Andrew Jackson vs. Eau Claire, Noon
Class 2A boys championship: Atlantic Collegiate vs. High Point Academy, 2 p.m.
Class 5A Division II girls championship: Berkeley vs. Greenwood, 4 p.m.
Class 5A Division II boys championship: Goose Creek vs. Greenville, 6 p.m.
This story was originally published March 6, 2025 at 7:00 AM.
