The Duke’s Hoops Preview: Millbrook vs Sherando doubleheader

1/16/26, Winchester, VA- Sherando takes the short trip to Millbrook for a classic Northwestern District rivalry basketball doubleheader in tonight’s Hike Kidz Foundation Game of the Week courtesy of Brickhouse Bar and Grill on Fox Sports Radio 1450, TheRiver953.com, and The River 95.3 app.

The boys are tipping off first at 6 pm with pregame coverage at 5:45 pm, and then the girls following a ceremony for Millbrook’s Love Loud campaign.

Millbrook High School’s Love Loud game has become an annual tradition to honor, remember, and bring awareness to all types of cancer.

This year’s game honors Millbrook alum and former wrestling standout Dylan Wisman, who was diagnosed with a rare form of kidney cancer, and will support Wisman’s organization, The Outdoorsmen Fellowship, to raise awareness and encourage early screening.

Before the ceremony, the boys take the court with both teams sitting at 9-4 and heating up.

Sherando enters the matchup as winners of four in a row and seven of the last eight while Millbrook has won five of their last seven.

The Warriors have a balanced offensive approach led by Reth Puller (10.7 ppg) and Sean Benton (10.5 ppg) and a stifling defense.

Coach Garland Williams group has allowed only the Handley Judges to eclipse 70 points in a game and Skyline joins Handley as the only teams to go over 60 points.

Sherando will have their hands full with the Pioneers offensive attack led by Rylee Baker who is coming off the best game of his career.

Baker put up 40 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 steals in a dual against Ashby Copenhaver (31 points, 9 3-pointers) and James Wood.

Baker has been building to a performance like that all season long.

The senior leads the area in scoring by a wide margin at 21.5 points per game and already has105 more points on the season than the area’s second leading scorer on average, Wood’s Brodie Sirbaugh (17 ppg).

Keon Lewis is also coming off back to back double-digit scoring appearances and his best rebounding game against the Colonels with 9 (8 in the second half).

This should be a tightly contested matchup that comes down to the wire and will start early at 6 pm so call out of work early if you have to, it will be worth it!

The schools will then break for Love Loud’s ceremony and then the girls take the floor with both teams still looking to turn the corner in a waning season.

The Pioneers are coming off a win against James Wood that halted a six game losing skid and Strasburg ended a potential winning streak for Sherando after back-to-back wins against Warren County and Liberty.

While the teams haven’t quite put it all together, they both posses star power with two of the area’s most prolific scorers in Jane Moreland and Avery Ryan.

Moreland ranks 3rd in the area in points at 15.8 and 2nd in the area in rebounding with 9.7 per game.

Ryan is just behind her in scoring at 15.6 per game while shooting efficiently and ranking 2nd in 3-point, free throw, and field goal percentage.

Both have the ability to take over the game and may need to if their teammates are struggling.

Some of the younger pieces for these teams are starting to settle in like sophomores Grace Moreland for Millbrook and Kinsley Richardson for Sherando.

The younger Moreland recently put up 17 points against Handley and averages 8.9 per game while Richardson averages 11.3 points per game and is Sherando’s leading rebounder at 6.4 per game.

Both boys and girls matchups appear very even on paper and I predict a split decision for these district bouts with Millbrook’s offense led by Baker to become the 3rd team to reach the 60s against Sherando’s defense, Pioneers win 64-58.

For the girls matchup on the other hand, Sherando’s defensive focus under 1st year coach Regina Downing will start to pay-off.

Sherando makes some clutch free throws late for the 48-44 win.

For Josh Kirby’s chat with:

  • Millbrook girls coach Cary Bartlett, click here.
  • Sherando boys coach Garland Williams and Millbrook boys coach Erick Green Sr., click here.

For more local sports coverage, check out the latest Sports Dogs podcast here.

The Duke’s Hoops Preview: Skyline vs Millbrook

1/6/26 Front Royal, VA- Millbrook hits the road to visit Skyline in tonight’s Hike Kidz Foundation Game of the Week courtesy of Brickhouse Bar and Grill on Fox Sports Radio 1450, TheRiver953.com, and The River 95.3 app with coverage starting around 7:15 pm for the estimated 7:30 pm tip-off.

Both teams began there seasons with strong starts and will need to sustain that success as the calendar turns and district play starts to heat-up.

While Millbrook is in Class 4 and Skyline is in Class 3, both are members of the Northwestern District and usually put on a show for the fans in attendance.

This is the first of two matchups this season and last year the teams split the season series 1-1.

The homestanding Hawks won their first six games to start the season before stumbling into two losses in the Ram Hardwood Classic.

Skyline led throughout the first half against Spring Mills before fouls began to pile up and the size of the reigning West Virginia State Champions began to take its toll.

The Cardinals pulled away with a 17-4 run to close things out.

The following night against Central, it was more of the same through the first 3 quarters with Skyline leading the entire way.

Then in the fourth quarter, Central tightened up their defense leaving the Hawks scoreless in the final frame and Derek Batiz- Lugo took over scoring the game winning 3 pointer and the game’s final 9 points.

Skyline bounced back into the win column, 66-47, on their most recent outing against Sherando with a balanced scoring attack that saw 5 players in double figures (Cameron Kerns 13 points, Day’Shawn Haley 12 points, Zayden Burks 12 points, Mark Jeffries 10 points, Bentley Frye 10 points).

Millbrook will look for their bounce back against Skyline after a tough loss at home to Handley.

Millbrook hung around with one of the favorites to win the VHSL Class 4 title before falling 63-55.

The Judges were without top scorer Will Braun-Duin, but Jaevon Brisco (20 points), Kyren Oglesby(16 points), and Christian Dinges (19 points) shouldered the load in his absence.

Fouls piled up on the Pioneers which led to Handley reaching the bonus in 3 of 4 quarters and they made it count shooting 17/22 from the line.

Coach Erick Green Sr.’s squad did not go quietly into the night and won the fourth quarter 20-14 behind senior leader Rylee Baker and sophomore spark plug Keanen Dennis.

The loss halted Millbrook’s second four game winning streak this season, but now the Pioneers will head back on the road where they have played incredibly well this season.

Seven of Millbrook’s eight wins have came on the road and all four games in the most recent winning streak came on the road with Baker silencing crowds across the region.

During that stretch, he averaged 26.8 points per game and each win came by 12+.

Baker will need a performance on pace with those outings to take out the Hawks Tuesday night and the game appears to be a matchup of a team with the best player on the floor vs the more balanced team.

Skyline’s team defense has improved lately and could be the difference to limit Baker and the Pioneers.

Millbrook should have an advantage on the glass due to their size, but Skyline’s athleticism will make that size a liability when attempting on-ball defense.

I look for Skyline’s balanced approach to help them hold on after a back-and-forth game, Hawks 67-Pioneers 65.

Click here for Josh Kirby’s interviews with tonight’s coaches Harold Chunn and Erick Green Sr.

The Duke’s Hoops Preview: Millbrook vs Handley boys and girls doubleheader

1/2/26, Winchester, VA- Millbrook welcomes Handley in a Northwestern District boys and girls basketball doubleheader tonight for the Hike Kidz Foundation Game of the Week courtesy of Brickhouse Bar and Grill on Fox Sports Radio 1450, TheRiver953.com, and TheRiver953.app with coverage starting at 5:45 pm for the girls 6 pm tip-off followed by the boys.

In the girls matchup, Handley and Millbrook meet with identical 3-7 records, but the Judges are starting to find their footing while the Pioneers are still struggling to find their way.

Handley has won three of their last four with the lone loss coming to 9-1 Turner Ashby and the most recent win against previously undefeated East Rockingham.

Reagan Edsell recently returned to the Handley lineup after an injury and has led the way ever since.

Against East Rock, she put up 35 points and gave Harrisonburg/Rockingham County residents a taste of what she is capable of before heading to James Madison University next year.

In addition to Edsell, Reese Craig has been elite in the paint and Cameron Hobson’s three point shooting has taken another step forward.

Millbrook was hoping to have similar support for their returning star Jane Moreland but due to some injuries and sickness surrounding the team, she has been asked to carry the load.

While Handley has stacked wins in their recent outings, Millbrook is just 1-7 after starting the season 2-0.

Jane Moreland can put up a double-double every night but without additional support, it could be a long season for the Pioneers.

Coach Cary Bartlett is still optimistic for the season and we could see some big strides from underclassman like Grace Moreland, Emily Randall and Brielle Demus who have shown potential throughout the season.

Grace Moreland led the Pioneers in the season opening win with 15 points and Millbrook will need her to continue to help out her big sister in the scoring column.

When the boy’s take the court, Handley will need to overcome a key injury on their roster and lockdown one of the area’s top athletes to continue their quest towards a State Title against an upset minded Millbrook squad.

Future D-I athlete and reigning All State selection Will Braun-Duin went down with a leg injury against Sherando in our last game of the week and the Judges responded by outscoring the Warriors 40-15 the rest of the way.

While Handley should be able to win the district with or without Braun-Duin, their State Title hopes could lie with their injured leading scorer.

The Judges went 0-2 during the recent Arby’s Classic without Braun-Duin played put up respectable performances against two powerhouse programs in Oak Hill and Roanoke Catholic.

Millbrook’s star power on the other hand has continued to heat up with Rylee Baker dominating the competition lately.

The Pioneers enter Friday night on a four game win streak with Baker averaging 26.8 ppg through the stretch.

Outside of the superstars in Baker and Braun-Duin, both teams have great supporting pieces as well.

Christian Dinges, Kyren Oglesby and Jaevon Brisco all have college basketball aspirations for Handley and Millbrook’s Keon Lewis, Daniel Clater, and Keanen Dennis provide plenty options to help out Baker.

This matchup will also feature one of the best coaching duals in Virginia this weekend with the established leader Erick Green Sr. taking on the youngest head coach to lead a team to the VHSL Championship, Zach Harrell-Zook.

Expect a big crowd for these rivals as Millbrook’s 7-2 record this season has came primarily on the road or in tournaments and tonight will be their first home game in over a month.

Just two seasons ago, a struggling Millbrook boys team upset Handley thanks in part to the rowdy homecourt.

For the girls matchup, I look for Handley to ride their recent momentum and go to Edsell early and often to secure the lead and roll from there, Handley 57-Millbrook 37.

The boys should be a bit more competitive with the loss of Braun-Duin evening the playing field, but Judge’s depth will prove to be too much for the Pioneers and Handley will pull through late with some clutch shooting from the free throw line, 76-69.

For color commentator Josh Kirby’s interview with both girl’s basketball coaches Cary Bartlett and Katlyn Orndorff, click here.

For Josh’s interview with Coach Erick Green Sr., click here.

(Coach Harrell-Zook was unavailable for an interview at this time.)

For more news from across the Shenandoah Valley, click here.

The Duke’s Hoops Preview: Skyline vs Millbrook

Tonight tips-off our coverage of the High School Basketball Game of the Week on Fox Sports Radio 1450, theriver953.com, and The River 95.3 app with the Skyline Hawks hosting the Millbrook Pioneers (0-1) starting at 7:15 pm.

Skyline returns a ton of talent from last year’s roster including late season call-up Zayden Burks, Isaiah Maxwell (5.3 ppg), Andre Ford (7.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg), Ahsan Adul-Qasim(6.3 ppg), and First Team All-District and All-Region selection Dwayne Tucker (18 ppg, 9.8 rpg, 2.6 spg).

Tucker is also one of the area’s leading returners in points, steals, rebounds, and field-goal percentage.

The Hawks biggest losses came in guards Colby Wood and Caden Thorne, but will have Burks, Cole Logan and Dayshawn Haley ready to step up at their former roles.

Coach Harold Chunn’s squad utilized a fast paced style and aggressive defense to advance to the Regional Semifinals last year, before falling to James Monroe at home.

This is a team that plays at another level on their homecourt in recent years and has allowed only three home losses over the last two seasons: two playoff losses and one loss to Class 4 state title contender Handley.

Millbrook is continuing to shift the culture of their basketball program in the second year under the local-legend Erick Green Sr.

Coach Green wants his Pioneers to focus on a balanced, team approach and will be led by returning contributors Rylee Baker(51.5% 3p, 75% FT) and 6’4″ Shaun Rooks (8.7 ppg, 1 bpg).

Rooks and 6’4″ freshman Braylon Fauver will have their hands full Tuesday night with Skyline’s senior forward.

Tucker had a career night against the Pioneers last year totaling 27 points including an exclamation point of a dunk in the fourth quarter during the 88-74 win.

Skyline’s wealth of varsity experience will play a huge roll against a Millbrook team still finding itself after a 69-33 loss to Broad Run on Monday night.

I predict the Hawks soar to a win on opening night over the Pioneers, 74-66.

Check out the full list of upcoming games on Fox Sports Radio 1450, theriver953.com and The River 95.3 app with the schedule below!