The John Carroll Patriots came tearing into Thursday's matchup with three straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 12 points) and they left with even more momentum. They walked away with a 58-48 victory over St. Anthony's. Given John Carroll's advantage in MaxPreps's basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 27th in Maryland, while St. Anthony's is ranked 143rd in New York), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
St. Anthony's lost despite a true team effort on the offense, the best among them being Chris Welling, who scored ten points along with six rebounds. Another player making a difference was James Taylor jr., who scored nine points along with five rebounds.
John Carroll has been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 8-4 record this season. As for St. Anthony's, their defeat dropped their record down to 5-2.
John Carroll will be playing in front of their home fans against Gilman at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Gilman is hoping to put an end to a three-game streak of away losses. St. Anthony's won't have much time to rest: their next game is against Springside Chestnut Hill Academy at 10:30 a.m. on December 29th. Springside Chestnut Hill Academy knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with flashy point totals in its past 13 matchups -- so hopefully St. Anthony's likes a good challenge.
