Columbia was not able to break out of their rough patch on Thursday as the team picked up their third straight loss. They fell just short of the New Life Academy Bobcats by a score of 56-53. While losing is never fun, the Wildcats can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 486th, while the Bobcats are ranked 184th).
Despite the defeat, Columbia had strong showings from Jaimarques Whitley, who went 9 for 22 on his way to 23 points and seven steals, and Jayden Sawyer, who went 8 of 19 on his way to 19 points in addition to seven steals and five rebounds. That was a full 35.8% of Columbia's points, marking the fifth time in a row he's posted more than a third of the team's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Gabriel Marlow, who put up six points.
Columbia's loss dropped their record down to 1-7. As for New Life Academy, the victory (which was their seventh in a row) raised their record to 10-3.
Both squads will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Columbia won't have much time to rest: their next matchup is against Northside - Pinetown at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Northside - Pinetown is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 66.4 points per game this season. As for New Life Academy, they will venture away from home to take on Bear Grass Charter at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
