nTime: 7:30 p.m.
nBracket: 3A East
nSeeds: No. 11 South Brunswick Cougars at No. 6 East Rowan Mustangs
nRecords: South Brunswick 5-5; East Rowan 8-3
Massey ratings: (No. 218) South Brunswick vs. (No. 112) East Rowan
nHead coaches: South Brunswick: First-year coach Roman Kelley; East: Brian Hinson (3rd year, 16-18)
n SB offense: 19.3 ppg
n SB defense: 18.5 ppg
n East offense: 20.9 ppg
n East defense: 19.8 ppg
n SB vs. winning teams: 1-3
n East vs. winning teams: 2-3
n East at home: 3-3
n Cougars on the road: 2-3
n Who beat South Brunswick? Wilmington Ashley (4-7), West Brunswick (7-3, twice), North Brunswick (5-5), East Bladen (11-0)
Who beat East? Salisbury (7-4), West Rowan (11-0), South Rowan (9-2)nSeries: First meeting
nNext week: Winner takes on the Southern Guilford-Havelock winner
nGame notes: South Brunswick will be making a long trip to Granite Quarry. The school is in Southport, the area that includes Long Beach, Caswell Beach, Holden Beach and Ocean Isle. The Cougars were 10-4 as a 2A school in 2008 and reached the third round of the playoffs.
Based on power ratings, East received a favorable first-round draw. If it wins this game, being assigned to the East bracket could get tough travel-wise in a hurry. The likely second-round opponent is Havelock. That’s in the New Bern area.
The Mustangs’s option offense relies on junior QB Jamey Blalock(1,423 yards total offense). Receivers Riley Weber and Preston Troutman have combined for 10 TD catches. Chris Moore (719 rushing yards) and Quentin Sifford (601 yards) lead the running attack. ó Mike London