The Hand Tigers posted their closest win yet this season on Saturday. They narrowly escaped with a victory as the squad sidled past Fitch 58-56. The win was all the more spectacular given Hand's disadvantage in MaxPreps' Connecticut basketball rankings (they are ranked 53rd, while Fitch is ranked ninth).
Despite the defeat, Fitch had strong showings from Jayvon "JJ" Robinson, who scored 18 points along with five assists and five steals, and Xavier Goode, who scored 21 points along with four steals. Robinson is absolutely dominating the point category: he's posted at least 15 every time he's taken the court this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Malakhi Sabb, who scored nine points along with two blocks.
Fitch struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only four offensive rebounds. That's the fewest offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
The win (which was Hand's third in a row) raised their record to 7-3. As for Fitch, their defeat ended a nine-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 9-3.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Hand will take on Guilford at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. As for Fitch, they will head out on the road to square off against Norwich Free Academy at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday.
