Basketball Recap: Nathan Jackson Key Part of a Team Effort in Gators Win

Spring Creek hadn't done well against North Johnston recently (they were 1-8 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Tuesday. The Spring Creek Gators came out on top against the North Johnston Panthers by a score of 69-57. For the Gators, this counts as revenge for the 81-26 victory the Panthers walked away with the last time they faced one another back in February of 2024.

Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Spring Creek to victory, but perhaps none more so than Nathan Jackson, who almost dropped a double-double on 30 points and nine boards. Those 30 points gave Jackson a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Brennan Chambers, who went 5 of 12 on his way to 17 points along with six rebounds and four steals.

Several Panthers players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Kaleb Pone, who went 11 of 22 en route to 22 points along with six assists and six boards. That was a full 38.6% of North Johnston's points, marking the third time in a row he's posted more than a third of the team's points. Aamari Dunston was another key player, going 6 of 13 on his way to 14 points and four steals.

The win made it two in a row for Spring Creek and bumps their season record up to 4-6. As for North Johnston, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 4-8.

Spring Creek will have a chance to go back-to-back against North Johnston: the pair's next game is a rematch scheduled at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday.