Basketball Recap: Aleyah Wilson and Y'anna Rivers Secure Win for James Kenan

James Kenan had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 11 points) and they went ahead and made it three on Friday. They managed a 48-44 victory over the Southwest Onslow Stallions. For the Tigers, this counts as revenge for the 50-42 win the Stallions walked away with the last time they faced one another back in February of 2024.

James Kenan was led to victory by Y'Anna Rivers and Aleyah Wilson. Rivers went 7 of 14 en route to 15 points along with six boards and four blocks, while Wilson almost dropped a double-double on ten points and nine rebounds. Rivers' evening made it three games in a row in which she has scored at least ten points. Alayjah Wright also deserves some recognition as she posted her first assists of the season.

Several Stallions players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Oriyanna Galloway, who went 7 for 12 on her way to 17 points in addition to six steals and five assists. That was a full 38.6% of Southwest Onslow's points, marking the 11th time in a row she's posted more than a third of the team's points. Khimara Dorsey was another key player, dropping a double-double on 12 points and 20 rebounds.

James Kenan is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five games, which provided a massive bump to their 5-4 record this season. As for Southwest Onslow, their record is now 7-5.

James Kenan has already played their next match, a 45-40 victory against Wallace-Rose Hill on the 27th. As for Southwest Onslow, they will get a bit of extra time to process the defeat as their next game is a ways off. They'll take on North Lenoir at 5:30 p.m. on January 28th. That contest will pit two of the most dominant guards against one another: Galloway and Cassadie Fraser.