Basketball Recap: Dynamic Duo of Kadence Penley and Aubrey Gilliland Lead North Buncombe to Victory

Black Hawks

Previous 3 Games

02/11/25 vs Asheville	58-53
02/07/25 vs Enka	65-31
02/04/25 vs West Henderson	58-44

North Buncombe had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 24 points) and they went ahead and made it three on Tuesday. They came within five points of losing the streak, but they secured a 58-53 W against the Asheville Cougars. That's the second time they've managed to beat them this season, as they also won 56-43 back in January.

Leading North Buncombe to victory were Aubrey Gilliland and Kadence Penley. Gilliland went 6-for-12 to rack up 16 points along with seven boards and four steals, while Penley posted 14 points and five assists. Gilliland has been hot recently, having posted four or more steals the last three times she's played. Lily Metcalf was another key player, putting up eight points.

North Buncombe smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in four consecutive contests.

Hayziah Dillingham and Zaryah Tucker certainly did their best on Tuesday to avoid the loss. Dillingham went 5-for-11 en route to 15 points and seven rebounds, while Tucker went 5-for-7 on her way to 18 points. The dominant performance also gave Tucker a new career-high in field goal percentage (71%). Another player making a difference was Taia Lytle, who scored four points.

North Buncombe pushed their record up to 16-7 with the win, which was their third straight at home. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 60.3 points over those games. As for Asheville, they now have a losing record of 11-12.

Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. North Buncombe will face off against Erwin at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. North Buncombe knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past three matches -- so hopefully Erwin likes a good challenge. As for Asheville, they will take on Enka at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. Asheville is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 51.3 points per game this season.