Basketball Recap: Smoky Mountain Takes a Loss

Smoky Mountain lost against North Henderson two weeks ago and unfortunately they wound up with the same result on Thursday. The Smoky Mountain Mustangs lost 57-37 to the North Henderson Knights. The contest marked the Mustangs' lowest-scoring match so far this season.

Custer Prenger

Rebounds

01/28/25 vs West Henderson	18
11/20/24 vs Andrews	15
12/26/24 vs East Burke	14
12/03/24 @ Cherokee	14
01/22/25 vs Rosman	13
+ 17 more games

Despite the loss, Smoky Mountain still got an impressive performance from Custer Prenger, who dropped a double-double on 19 points and 11 boards. Prenger is becoming a predictor of Smoky Mountain's success: when he posts at least ten rebounds the team is 9-4 (and 1-8 when he doesn't). The team also got some help courtesy of Lane Plemmons, who posted nine points.

Even though they lost, Smoky Mountain smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in three consecutive games.

North Henderson's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Titus Moore, who dropped a double-double on 20 points and ten boards. Moore is also on a roll when it comes to field goal percentage, as he's posted one of at least 45% in the last four games he's played. Another player making a difference was Brayden Hudson, who went 5 of 8 to rack up 11 points and six rebounds.

Smoky Mountain has traveled a rocky road recently having lost six of their last eight contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 10-12 record this season. As for North Henderson, their victory bumped their record up to 13-10.

Smoky Mountain wasted no time getting back out on the court and has already played their next match, a 73-46 win against Tuscola on the 7th. As for North Henderson, they will square off against Pisgah at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Pisgah knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past four games -- so hopefully North Henderson likes a good challenge.