Shipley's's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Friday after their fifth straight loss. They opened the new year with a less-than-successful 73-62 defeat to Academy of the New Church. Shipley has not had much luck with Academy of the New Church recently, as the team's come up short the last four times they've met.
Shipley's loss came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Gyasi Miller, who scored 19 points along with five rebounds. Miller has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last four times he's played. Another player making a difference was Will Littles, Jr, who scored 21 points.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Academy of the New Church to victory, but perhaps none more so than Dior Carter, who scored 16 points along with seven rebounds. Those 16 points set a new season-high mark for him. Tobe Nwobu was another key contributor, scoring 14 points.
Shipley has not been sharp recently, as they've lost six of their last seven contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 2-8 record this season. As for Academy of the New Church, the win (which was their fifth in a row) raised their record to 9-2.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Shipley will square off against Abington Friends at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday. One thing working in Abington Friends' favor is that they have posted big point totals in their last three matches. Academy of the New Church is on the road again on Saturday and play against Cristo Rey Philadelphia at 1:30 p.m. on January 6th. Cristo Rey Philadelphia will be looking to keep their three-game home win streak alive.
