Ayden - Grifton is 0-10 against the Panthers since December of 2015 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Tuesday. The Ayden - Grifton Chargers will be playing in front of their home fans against the North Pitt Panthers at 6:00 p.m. The teams are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Ayden - Grifton has struggled recently with 12 defeats in a row, while the Panthers will arrive with nine straight victories.
Last Friday, Ayden - Grifton took a serious blow against the Rams, falling 48-21. Ayden - Grifton has struggled against the Rams recently, as their matchup on Friday was their third consecutive lost matchup.
Meanwhile, North Pitt stacked a 12th blowout win onto their ever-increasing hoard on Friday. They claimed a resounding 71-22 victory over SouthWest Edgecombe on the road. Given North Pitt's advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 14th, while the Cougars are ranked 134th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
North Pitt's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Zamareya Jones, who scored 20 points along with seven assists and six steals. Jones continues to roll, besting her previous point total in each of the last three games she's played. Jordan Speller was another key contributor, scoring 21 points along with four steals and two blocks.
Ayden - Grifton has not been sharp recently as the team's lost 13 of their last 14 matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 2-19 record this season. As for North Pitt, they pushed their record up to 16-3 with that victory, which was their third straight on the road.
Ayden - Grifton was dealt a bruising 55-3 loss at the hands of the Panthers when the teams last played back in January. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Jones, who went 6 for 8 from beyond the arc en route to 23 points and 4 assists. Now that Ayden - Grifton knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.
