Basketball Recap: Noah Smith's Big Game Can't Quite Lead Plainfield over Southport

While it was all tied up 31-31 at halftime, Plainfield was not quite Southport's equal in the second half on Friday. They fell to the Southport Cardinals 61-56. The Quakers were given a dose of their own medicine in this game as the Cardinals apparently hadn't forgotten their loss the last time these teams played back in December of 2023.

Several Quakers players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Noah Smith, who posted 19 points and six rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Harper Baker-Lands, who earned 13 points.

Even though they lost, Plainfield was working as a unit and finished the game with 16 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Southport only racked up six assists.

Southport got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Jack Turner out in front who put up 16 points. The match was Turner's third in a row with at least ten points. Another player making a difference was James Kalala, who dropped a double-double on 12 points and ten rebounds.

Plainfield's defeat ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 6-4. As for Southport, they are on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five games, which provided a nice bump to their 6-2 record this season.

Plainfield didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next contest, a 77-68 victory against Zionsville on the 4th. As for Southport, they will venture away from home to challenge Franklin Central at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Southport has three straight wins, Franklin Central has three straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the court.