Basketball Recap: Make It Nine in a Row for Sanderson

Spartans

Previous Games

02/22/25 vs Cardinal Gibbons	68-51
02/18/25 vs Leesville Road	81-76
02/14/25 vs Leesville Road	48-44
02/12/25 vs Enloe	69-48
02/11/25 @ Cardinal Gibbons	66-50
+ 4 more games

Sanderson had already won eight in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 11 points) and they went ahead and made it nine on Saturday. They strolled past the Cardinal Gibbons Crusaders with points to spare, taking the game 68-51. Given the Spartans' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 16th, while the Crusaders are ranked 61st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Sanderson had a senior duo take command as Nathan Fife to rack up 26 points and Gordie Balas on his way to 15 points and six boards. That makes it four consecutive games in which Fife has scored at least a third of Sanderson's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Mack Snavely, who posted seven points.

When it comes to explaining why Cardinal Gibbons lost, don't look at Cash McSweeney. Despite the final result, he dropped a double-double with 20 points and 12 rebounds. McSweeney has become a key player for Cardinal Gibbons: the team is 14-6 when he posts at least ten boards, but 2-4 otherwise. Damon Phillips was another key player, putting up 14 points.

Sanderson's victory was their ninth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 23-3. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 63.8 points over those games. As for Cardinal Gibbons, their loss dropped their record down to 16-10.

Sanderson didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next game, a 69-42 win against Middle Creek on the 25th. As for Cardinal Gibbons, they have also already played their next match, an 81-77 victory against Broughton on the 25th.