Basketball Recap: Shady Side Academy Takes Down North Star in a Playoff Battle

It can be hard to translate regular season success to the playoffs, but Shady Side Academy had no problem doing just that on Saturday. They walked away with a 55-44 win over the North Star Cougars. The victory was nothing new for the Bulldogs as they're now sitting on three straight.

Ethan Smith and Andy Retassie certainly did their best on Saturday to avoid the loss. Smith shot 58% from the field to rack up 18 points and eight boards, while Retassie posted nine points in addition to seven rebounds and three steals. Smith is also on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed two or more in each of the last 22 games he's played.

Bulldogs

Previous Games (Away)

03/08/25 @ North Star	55-44
02/24/25 @ Keystone Oaks	64-57
02/18/25 @ McGuffey	51-31
02/07/25 @ Seton LaSalle	41-34
01/31/25 @ Apollo Ridge	60-35
+ 2 more games

Shady Side Academy pushed their record up to 13-13 with the win, which was their seventh straight on the road. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 55.9 points over those games. As for North Star, their loss ended a seven-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 20-7.

Looking ahead, Shady Side Academy will face off against Trinity on Wednesday. Trinity knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past six contests -- so hopefully Shady Side Academy likes a good challenge. North Star does not have any more games scheduled as of now.