The Watauga Pioneers won the last time they faced the Hibriten Panthers, and things went their way on Friday too. Watauga enjoyed a cozy 68-51 win over Hibriten. Given Watauga's advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 125th, while Hibriten is ranked 541st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Watauga's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Josiah Railey, who scored 15 points along with five rebounds. Railey has been hot recently, having posted 15 or more points the last five times he's played. Another player making a difference was Cade Keller, who scored 11 points along with eight assists and three steals.
Watauga pushed their record up to 17-5 with that victory, which was their fifth straight at home. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 73.6 points per game. As for Hibriten, they are on a ten-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 1-20.
Both squads are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Watauga will take on Freedom at 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Watauga knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with flashy point totals in its past 11 contests -- so hopefully Freedom likes a good challenge. As for Hibriten, they will look to defend their home court on Tuesday against Alexander Central at 8:00 p.m. Hopefully Alexander Central focused on turnovers this week since the team gave up 14 on Friday.
