Basketball Recap: Rapides Comes Up Short

Rapides played a tough matchup on Tuesday in which they were outscored in every quarter. They were beaten by the North Central Hurricanes 65-31. The Mustangs were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 43-20.

Despite the defeat, Rapides had strong showings from Zayveian Johnson, who posted 15 points and five rebounds, and Jyren Byrd, who earned eight points. That was a full 48.4% of the Mustangs' points, marking the third time in a row Johnson has put up more than a third of the team's points.

Leading North Central to victory were Malachi Joseph and Sherman Smith. Joseph dropped a double-double with 28 points and 11 boards, while Smith scored 16 points in addition to seven rebounds and seven steals. Joseph also grabbed four steals, which is notable because the Hurricanes are 2-1 when he posts at least three steals, but 0-6 otherwise. Christopher Sylvester also deserves some recognition as he scored his first points of the season.

Having lost for the first time this season, Rapides fell to 2-1. As for North Central, the win snapped their losing streak at seven games and leaves them with a 2-7 record.

Looking ahead, Rapides will venture away from home to square off against Glenmora at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. As for North Central, they will welcome Northside at 7:00 p.m. on Monday.