Before the season tipped off, there was a general consensus among Battlefield District coaches that the 2018-19 district championship race would be an unpredictable one.

With most of January gone and the stretch run now upon us, the word “unpredictable” doesn’t quite do justice to what’s occurred thus far.

The James Monroe Yellow Jackets have used two big road wins to propel themselves to the top of the district standings. After edging Courtland 42-40 back on Jan. 2, they picked up a 70-68 win at Caroline last Thursday. Senior 6-foot-5 forward Girardi Cubillan’s 19 points and six blocked shots led JM, while sophomore guard Ricky Goode-Wright added 14 points of his own.

Goode-Wright is leading the Jackets (7-6 overall, 5-1 district) in scoring at 16.8 points per game, and has also made a team-best 28 3-pointers this season. JM has also gotten a lift from junior guard Tyler Whitman, who connected on a total of eight 3’s in the win over Caroline and Friday’s 62-54 victory over King George.

Up next: @Chancellor, 1/22; vs. Courtland, 1/25; vs. Bethel @VirginiaPreps Classic, 1/26.

The Caroline Cavaliers recovered quickly from their setback against James Monroe, beating Eastern View 82-74 just 24 hours later. Junior point guard Kaylen Taylor poured in a career-high 32 points in the win, despite not scoring in the first quarter. Senior guard Mykai Smith added 17 points, while junior swingman Koby Metz chipped in 14.

Caroline (8-4, 3-2) has been up and down since the calendar flipped to 2019. The Cavaliers blew a 16-point fourth-quarter lead and lost 60-58 at Courtland on Jan. 8, then lit up the scoreboard in a 96-85 victory at Chancellor on Jan. 11 before continuing to yo-yo last week against JM and EV. Three of their four losses overall this season have come by two points each.

Smith is currently the Battlefield’s leading scorer at 24.2 PPG., and Taylor is second in the district at 21.5.

Up next: vs. Spotsylvania, 1/22; @King George, 1/24.

The Courtland Cougars suffered a disappointing setback on Friday at Chancellor, falling 79-72 to the Chargers in overtime. Camryn McDonald and Zane Fox scored 26 and 24 points, respectively, for the Cougars.

Courtland (8-6, 3-2) is a lot like Caroline, in that the Cougars have suffered multiple losses by slim margins this season. They’ve lost four games by a combined total of eight points.

McDonald, a 6-2 senior forward, has led the way for Courtland for much of this season, averaging 16.8 PPG.

Up next: @Culpeper, 1/23; @James Monroe, 1/25; vs. Spotsylvania, 1/26.

The Eastern View Cyclones were led by junior guards Alex Spangler (23 pts) and Zion Clark (20) in their loss at Caroline on Friday.

Eastern View (6-7, 3-2) has struggled at times this season to find its identity, looking good in wins over Culpeper, King George, James Monroe and Spotsylvania, but appearing out of sync for long stretches of time during losses against Courtland, Hanover and Caroline.

Up next: vs. King George, 1/22; vs. Chancellor, 1/24.

The Chancellor Chargers finally got a big win with their triumph over Courtland. Junior A.J. Coghill’s 19 points were a team-high in the victory, while classmates Anthony Melvin and Vincent Lewis added 13 apiece.

Chancellor (5-8, 3-2), which has a young roster made up largely of quick, sharpshooting guards, has been paced by Melvin and Lewis for much of the season. Lewis leads the district with 31 made 3-pointers, while Melvin has drilled 22.

Up next: vs. James Monroe, 1/22; @Eastern View, 1/24; @Spotsylvania, 1/25.

The King George Foxes got 18 points from senior swingman David Clift in their loss at James Monroe on Friday. Keiron Kelly added 13.

King George (6-8, 1-4) has struggled against the Battlefield’s top teams so far this season, as first-year head coach Antron Yates works to rebuild the Foxes’ program.

Up next: @Eastern View, 1/22; vs. Caroline, 1/24.

The Spotsylvania Knights did not play last week, with their last game action coming in an 80-53 loss to Eastern View on Jan. 11.

Spotsylvania (2-11, 0-5) has struggled while featuring a rotation mostly full of underclassmen this season.

Up next: @Caroline, 1/22; vs. Chancellor, 1/25; @Courtland, 1/26.