Paoli was the 43-24 winner over Eastern when they last played one another back in January of 2024, but their luck changed this time around. The Paoli Rams took a 50-32 bruising from the Eastern Musketeers on Tuesday. While losing is never fun, the Rams can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Indiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 266th, while the Musketeers are ranked 123rd).
Paoli's loss came despite strong showings from Jericho Hopper and Lilly Hall. Hopper dropped a double-double on 12 points and 13 boards, while Hall posted 11 points and three steals. That was a full 37.5% of Paoli's points, marking the 11th time in a row she's put up more than a third of the team's points. Tariana Burkhead also deserves some recognition as she posted her first block of the season.
Eastern's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Addison Smith led the charge by almost dropping a double-double on ten points and nine steals. Smith has been hot, having posted two or more steals the last eight times she's played. Avery Smith was another key player, putting up six points along with nine rebounds and seven steals.
Paoli's loss dropped their record down to 8-14. As for Eastern, the win got them back to even at 11-11.
Paoli didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next game, a 66-37 defeat against Eastern on the 4th. As for Eastern, they have also already played their next match, a 56-41 victory against Springs Valley on the 31st.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
