The Stoneham Spartans's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Thursday after their third straight defeat. They took a 53-45 hit to the loss column at the hands of Northeast Metro RVT. That's two games in a row now that Stoneham has lost by exactly eight points.
Northeast Metro RVT's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Chris Zullo led the charge by scoring 15 points along with seven steals and five assists. Zullo hasn't dropped below two steals for nine straight games. The team also got some help courtesy of Kerry Jean, who dropped a double-double on 16 points and 11 rebounds.
Stoneham has been struggling recently as they've lost eight of their last nine games, which put a noticeable dent in their 3-16 record this season. As for Northeast Metro RVT, the victory was the sixth in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 9-8.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Stoneham won't have much time to rest: their next game is against Melrose at 5:00 p.m. on February 9th. Melrose presents a significant challenge as they come into the match much higher ranked than Stoneham in Massachusetts (Melrose is ranked 116th, while Stoneham is ranked 273rd). As for Northeast Metro RVT, they will head out on the road to face off against Innovation Academy at 5:15 p.m. on Monday. Hopefully Northeast Metro RVT focused on turnovers this week since the team gave up 12 on Thursday.
