Basketball Recap: Kellen Smith and Cole Norris Secure Win for South Johnston

While South Johnston didn't have the best season last year (they finished 9-15), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past. They narrowly escaped with a win as the squad sidled past the South Garner Titans 52-49. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Trojans have posted since February 2, 2024.

Leading South Johnston to victory were Cole Norris and Kellen Smith. Norris went 7 of 17 on his way to 22 points and eight boards, while Smith went 5 of 10 on his way to 14 points and six rebounds. With that strong performance, Norris is now averaging an impressive 15.5 points per game. The team also got some help courtesy of Jax Barbour, who posted four points in addition to five assists and five boards.

South Garner's defeat came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Kai Muschette, who went 5 of 10 on his way to 12 points. What's more, Muschette also racked up four assists, the most he's had since back in February of 2024. Another player making a difference was Luke Heaps, who went 5 of 7 on his way to 10 points and eight rebounds.

South Johnston has been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five games, which provided a nice bump to their 6-4 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 55.4 points per game. As for South Garner, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost three of their last four matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 3-7 record this season.

South Johnston didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next contest, a 64-48 loss against Cleveland on the 28th. As for South Garner, they also wasted no time getting back out on the court and have already played their next game, a 53-37 win against Cape Fear Christian Academy on the 28th.