Basketball Recap: West Johnston Comes Up Short

If West Johnston was feeling good fresh off their 63-37 takedown of Smithfield-Selma last Tuesday, their most recent game may have dampened their spirits a bit. The West Johnston Wildcats had to suffer through a 70-41 loss at the hands of the Hunt Warriors. While losing is never fun, the Wildcats can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 435th, while the Warriors are ranked 152nd).

West Johnston lost on Wednesday despite a true team effort on offense, the best among them being Christian McFall, who posted 12 points. Noah Ellington was another key player, putting up five points.

Hunt found their leader in sophomore Na'Sir Hines, who went 8 of 11 en route to 21 points and six boards. Hines is also on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed two or more in the last four games he's played. Another player making a difference was Ny'Gir Alston, who went 5 for 6 on his way to 11 points and five rebounds.

West Johnston has been struggling recently as they've lost three of their last four contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 6-13 record this season. As for Hunt, the victory was the sixth in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 15-5.

Both teams are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. West Johnston will take on C.B. Aycock at 7:45 p.m. on Friday. C.B. Aycock has been getting the ball to fall more lately as they've increased their point totals each of their last three games. As for Hunt, they will challenge South Johnston at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. One thing working in Hunt's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last six matches.