Basketball Recap: Cleveland Comes Up Short

Cleveland was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their eighth straight defeat. They were two points away from ending the streak, but they lost a 60-58 heartbreaker at the hands of the Rhea County Golden Eagles. The Blue Raiders were not able to repeat the success they had when they faced the Golden Eagles earlier this season, when they won 60-55.

Maguire Evans

Points

02/14/25 @ Rhea County	22
11/26/24 vs Chattanooga Central	17
11/22/24 @ Howard Tech	17
12/21/24 @ Loudon	15
02/11/25 vs Oak Ridge	14
+ 18 more games

When it comes to explaining why Cleveland lost, don't look at Maguire Evans. Despite the final result, he went 8-for-15 on his way to 22 points. Cleveland is 3-1 when Evans posts 15 or more points, but 8-13 otherwise. Antonio Westfield was another key player, putting up seven points and seven boards.

Cleveland's loss dropped their record down to 11-14. As for Rhea County, their victory was their first in the district, bumping their district record up to 1-4 and their overall record up to 20-11.

Cleveland does not have any more games scheduled as of now. As for Rhea County, they will take on Walker Valley at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Walker Valley knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past 27 matches -- so hopefully Rhea County likes a good challenge.