After having lost a blowout in their previous game against George Washington, the Nitro Wildcats were happy to have found some success on Wednesday. They pulled ahead with a 76-75 photo finish over Scott. Given Nitro's advantage in MaxPreps' West Virginia basketball rankings (they are ranked sixth, while the Skyhawks are ranked 72nd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Nitro got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Landon Poniatowski out in front who dropped a double-double on 11 points and 15 rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Ashton Crouch, who scored 17 points along with six rebounds.
Despite the loss, Scott still got an impressive performance from Owen Adkins, who went 7 for 15 from beyond the arc en route to 29 points and 4 assists. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Adkins has scored all season. Cole Elkins was another key contributor, scoring 13 points along with five assists and two steals.
Even though they lost, Scott were working as a unit and finished the game with 23 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.
Nitro's win bumped their record up to 10-1. As for Scott, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 5-8.
Both teams are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Nitro will take on the Generals at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. As for Scott, they will be playing at home against the Panthers at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday. Lincoln County is strutting with some offensive muscle, as they've averaged 56.3 points per game this season.
