The Avery County Vikings will wrap up 2024 with a road trip to face off against the McDowell Titans at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.
Avery County easily dispatched Rosman on Tuesday, but unfortunately both the margin and the ultimate result were a different story in this one. Avery County fell just short of Draughn by a score of 70-67 on Thursday. The Vikings' loss signaled the end of their three-game winning streak.
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Hank Johnson, who went 7 of 14 on his way to 20 points and eight rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Landon Liner, who almost dropped a double-double on 13 points and nine rebounds.
Even though they lost, Avery County smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive rebounds in four consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, McDowell entered their tilt with Franklin on Friday with three consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with four. The stars were shining brightly for them in a 75-59 victory over the Panthers.
Avery County better keep an eye on Rylan Parkins. He was instrumental in McDowell's win, putting up 27 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Kyson Rinnert, who posted 16 points.
Avery County's defeat was their first in the conference, dropping their conference record down to 2-1 and their overall record down to 7-2. As for McDowell, they pushed their record up to 7-1 with the win, which was their fifth straight at home.
Avery County was taken down by McDowell 71-35 in their previous meeting back in December of 2023. That contest was all but decided by halftime, at which point Avery County was down 43-19.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
