Basketball Recap: Dereon Kee's Big Game Can't Quite Lead Shelby over East Rutherford

Shelby was the 52-49 winner over East Rutherford when they last played one another back in December of 2024, but their luck changed this time around. The Shelby Golden Lions took a 43-31 hit to the loss column at the hands of the East Rutherford Cavaliers on Wednesday. The match marked the Golden Lions' lowest-scoring contest so far this season.

Shelby lost despite a true team effort on offense, the best among them being Dereon Kee, who posted six points and six rebounds. Da'Mani French was another key player, putting up 12 points.

Golden Lions

Previous 2 Games

01/22/25 @ East Rutherford	31-43
01/15/25 @ Crest	50-52

Even though they lost, Shelby 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 ten offensive rebounds in three consecutive games.

East Rutherford can attribute much of their success to Bella Harris, who dropped a double-double on 15 points and 13 boards. Harris has been hot recently, having posted eight or more rebounds the last three times she's played. Another player making a difference was Garryn Thompson, who scored 13 points.

Shelby's defeat dropped their record down to 10-6. As for East Rutherford, they pushed their record up to 5-12 with the victory, which was their third straight at home.

Shelby has already played their next matchup, a 41-31 win against Burns on the 24th. As for East Rutherford, they also wasted no time getting back out on the court and have already played their next contest, a 66-36 victory against Brevard on the 24th.