Basketball Recap: Hillcrest Christian Falls Short of West Memphis Christian in the Playoffs

It's hard to turn regular season success into postseason wins, a fact Hillcrest Christian can now relate to. They were just a bucket shy of victory on Saturday and fell 69-68 to the West Memphis Christian Black Knights. The Cougars lost against the Black Knights in their previous head to head back in February of 2024, too, but the margin this time around was much closer than the 63-41 score last time.

Jaivyn Carter

Rebounds

02/15/25 vs West Memphis Christian	21
02/14/25 vs Tunica Academy	19
02/11/25 vs Regents	17
02/08/25 vs Lamar Christian	8
02/07/25 vs Sylva Bay Academy	12
+ 13 more games

Several Cougars players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Jaivyn Carter, who dropped a double-double with 22 points and 21 boards. That's the most rebounds Carter has posted since back in December of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Jordan Johnson, who dropped a double-double with 13 points and ten boards.

Even though they lost, Hillcrest Christian smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive boards in three consecutive contests.

Hillcrest Christian's loss dropped their record down to 19-10. As for West Memphis Christian, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won 13 of their last 15 matches, which provided a nice bump to their 18-5 record this season.

Coming up, Hillcrest Christian will challenge Claiborne Academy at 10:00 a.m. on Monday. Hillcrest Christian is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 59 points per game this season. West Memphis Christian does not have any more games scheduled as of now.