The Mariner Tritons pushed their score all the way to 55 on Saturday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They were dealt a 87-55 defeat at the hands of Richmond Heights. While losing is never fun, Mariner can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps's basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 223rd in Florida, while Richmond Heights is ranked 56th in Ohio).
Mariner's loss came despite strong showings from Marcus Kelley Jr and Corey Hunter. Kelley Jr scored 29 points along with eight rebounds, while Hunter scored 15 points along with nine rebounds and eight assists. Those eight assists set a new season-high mark for him. Another player making a difference was Justin Lewis, who scored eight points.
Mariner are on a three-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 7-6. As for Richmond Heights, they now have a winning record of 4-3.
Mariner is on the road again on Wednesday and play against Green Tech at 11:10 a.m. on December 27th. Hopefully Green Tech focused on turnovers this week since the team gave up 18 on Friday. Richmond Heights will wrap up 2023 with a road trip to face off against Garfield Heights at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Garfield Heights will be coming into the game with an undefeated record on the line.
