Basketball Recap: Addison Smith Key Part of a Team Effort in Musketeers Win

After losing to Paoli the last time they met, Eastern decided to demonstrate that turnabout is fair play. The Eastern Musketeers strolled past the Paoli Rams with points to spare on Tuesday, taking the game 50-32. Given the Musketeers' advantage in MaxPreps' Indiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 123rd, while the Rams are ranked 266th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Addison Smith

Steals

01/28/25 vs Paoli	9
01/14/25 @ Charlestown	9
12/10/24 @ Mitchell	9
01/25/25 vs Silver Creek	7
11/22/24 vs Salem	6
+ 16 more games

Eastern's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Addison Smith, who almost dropped a double-double on ten points and nine steals. Eastern is 4-2 when Smith posts five or more steals, but 7-9 otherwise. Another player making a difference was Avery Smith, who posted six points along with nine boards and seven steals.

Eastern smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive rebounds.they pulled down six more offensive boards than Paoli's almost as impressive total of ten

Defeat or not, Paoli got some senior leadership from Jericho Hopper and Lilly Hall. Hopper dropped a double-double on 12 points and 13 rebounds, while Hall had 11 points and three steals. That was a full 37.5% of Paoli's points, marking the 11th time in a row she's scored more than a third of the team's points. Tariana Burkhead also deserves some recognition as she posted her first block of the season.

The win got Eastern back to even at 11-11. As for Paoli, their loss dropped their record down to 8-14.

Eastern didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next game, a 56-41 victory against Springs Valley on the 31st. As for Paoli, they have also already played their next match, a 66-37 defeat against Eastern on the 4th.