Basketball Recap: Smoky Mountain Comes Up Short

Smoky Mountain was not able to break out of their rough patch on Thursday as the team picked up their fourth straight loss. They took a blow against the East Burke Cavaliers, falling 62-27. While losing is never fun, the Mustangs can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 359th, while the Cavaliers are ranked 19th).

It was another big night for Braelyn Stilwell, who went 5 of 11 en route to 17 points along with eight assists and eight blocks for East Burke. The game was Stilwell's 35th in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Kara Brinkley, who went 6 of 12 en route to 12 points and five rebounds.

Smoky Mountain's defeat dropped their record down to 2-8. As for East Burke, the win keeps them at an undefeated 11-0.

Smoky Mountain wasted no time getting back out on the court and has already played their next contest, a 47-37 loss against Avery County on the 27th. As for East Burke, they also didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next matchup, a 56-52 defeat against McDowell on the 27th.