Basketball Recap: North Johnston Comes Up Short

North Johnston played a tough game on Friday in which they were outscored in every quarter. They took a blow against the Franklin Academy Patriots, falling 72-35. The Panthers were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 35-14.

Kaleb Pone and Charlie Barnes certainly did their best on Friday to avoid the loss. Pone posted 17 points, while Barnes had eight points. Pone is on a roll when it comes to points, as he's now scored 17 or more in the last three games he's played.

Hayes Lewis continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines for Franklin Academy, going 9 of 13 on his way to 24 points and five rebounds. That's the most points Lewis has posted since back in January of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Aiden Henrie, who went 5 of 10 on his way to 13 points in addition to seven boards and three steals.

North Johnston's loss dropped their record down to 4-7. As for Franklin Academy, they moved to 9-5 with that victory, which also ended their four-game losing streak.

North Johnston will welcome Spring Creek at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Spring Creek knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past seven matchups -- so hopefully North Johnston likes a good challenge. As for Franklin Academy, they will head out to face off against East Wake Academy at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Franklin Academy is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 61.7 points per game this season.