The Harnett Central Trojans pushed their score all the way to 66 on Monday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They fell just short of Smithfield-Selma by a score of 69-66. Harnett Central was given a dose of their own medicine in this game as Smithfield-Selma apparently hadn't forgotten their defeat the last time these teams played last Wednesday.
Harnett Central's loss came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Kemaury Haywood, who scored 11 points along with eight rebounds and three steals. Another player making a difference was Quan Dixon, who scored 15 points.
Smithfield-Selma's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Dalvin Richardson led the charge by scoring 17 points along with four steals. Richardson also scored 15+ points for the first time this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Jacob Stewart, who scored ten points along with nine rebounds and seven blocks.
This is the second loss in a row for Harnett Central and nudges their season record down to 5-3. As for Smithfield-Selma, their win bumped their record up to 2-5.
Both squads are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Harnett Central will get a bit of extra time to process the loss as their next game is a ways off. They'll take on E.E. Smith at 7:30 p.m. on January 5, 2024. Smithfield-Selma will be home for the holidays to greet Triton at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. One thing working in Triton's favor is that they have posted big point totals in their last four matches.
