While it was all tied up 21-21 at halftime, the Paulding County Patriots were not quite the Alexander Cougars's equal in the second half on Friday. Paulding County fell 49-37 to Alexander. Paulding County lost against Alexander in their previous head to head back in February, too, but the margin this time around was much wider than the 43-39 score last time.
When it comes to explaining why Paulding County lost, one person who can't be blamed is Ariyonna Smart. Despite the final result, she scored 12 points along with 6 steals. Smart scored a full 32.4% of Paulding County's points, the third time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Alexus Wilson, who scored 8 points along with 8 rebounds.
Alexander got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Elon Williams out in front who scored 11 points along with 6 rebounds. The contest was Williams' third in a row with at least ten points. Nimah Ibidunni was another key contributor, dropping a double-double on 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Paulding County has been struggling recently, as they've lost four of their last five matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 4-5 record this season. As for Alexander, the victory (which was their fifth in a row) raised their record to 5-1.
Paulding County will head out on the road to face off against East Paulding at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. East Paulding comes in still looking for their first win of the season. As for Alexander, they will look to defend their home court on Tuesday against New Manchester at 6:00 p.m.
