Eastside basketball improved to 6-3 on the early season with a 65-51 over Powdersville on Monday afternoon.
The win moves the Eagles to Tuesday’s Silver Bracket championship in the Poinsettia Classic at Greenville High School.
“We didn’t play our best in the first half,” said Eastside head coach Jamar Armstrong, whose Eagles led by seven at the break. “We talked a lot about playing good defense in the second half and getting all the 50/50 balls, and I think we did a good job of that. Just doing the little things right.”
Eastside held a small lead for most of the game before pulling away late. The Eagles were paced by outstanding play from Thomas Rouse, who led all scorers in the contest with 18 points.
In the second quarter of the game, Rouse made the highlight play of the day — and possibly of his career.
The senior took the ball off the dribble from the top of the key, drove to the right side of the basket, and rose high in the air for a poster dunk.
“I’ve tried [a poster dunk] a couple of times this year, but I missed those,” said Rouse, laughing. “I was happy and fired up to see this one go down.”
Eastside’s Brandon Ray also contributed in a big way, finishing with 12 points and seven assists. Christian Campbell added 10 points and three boards for the Eagles in the winning effort.
Eastside earned its sixth win of the year after finishing with just seven wins total in 2024-25.
“I think there’s a different belief around here,” said Rouse. “We’re starting to get confidence that we can go out and win more of these games.”
“It’s not easy to get wins, and a lot of these guys aren’t used to winning yet and don’t always know how to do it,” said Armstrong. “But I think today was another step in the right direction.”
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