The Harding Raiders pushed their score all the way to 57 on Tuesday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They lost to Ursuline at home by a decisive 76-57 margin. While losing is never fun, Harding can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Ohio basketball rankings (they are ranked 112th, while Ursuline is ranked seventh).
Several Raiders players turned in solid performances, despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Naujeat Jones, who scored 11 points along with six rebounds. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Jones has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of Nandel Mcqueen, who scored nine points along with ten rebounds.
Even though they lost, Harding were smashing the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive rebounds. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Ursuline only pulled down 18 offensive rebounds.
Ursuline's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but DaShaun Will led the charge by scoring 19 points along with six assists. That's the first time this season that Will scored 15 or more points. Jayden Payne was another key contributor, scoring 13 points along with eight rebounds.
Harding's loss ended a five-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 2-1. As for Ursuline, the win for they keeps them at an undefeated 4-0.
Harding will head out on the road to face off against Villa Angela-St. Joseph at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Hopefully Villa Angela-St. Joseph focused on turnovers this week since the team gave up 24 on Tuesday. Ursuline will be home for the holidays to greet East at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
