Basketball Recap: Darius Liles' Big Game Can't Quite Lead Delmarva Christian over Sussex Central

After flying high against Salisbury last Thursday, Delmarva Christian came back down to earth. The Delmarva Christian Royals took a 73-65 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Sussex Central Golden Knights on Saturday. While losing is never fun, the Royals can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Delaware basketball rankings (they are ranked 169th, while the Golden Knights are ranked 22nd).

Delmarva Christian's loss came despite a true team effort with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Darius Liles, who went 7 for 10 on his way to 19 points. The dominant performance also gave Liles a new career-high in field goal percentage (70%). Malachi Light was another key player, going 5 of 12 to rack up 14 points and five boards.

Even though they lost, Delmarva Christian smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 12 offensive boards in three consecutive games.

Delmarva Christian's defeat dropped their record down to 13-5. As for Sussex Central, their victory bumped their record up to 10-6.

Both squads are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Delmarva Christian will square off against Worcester Prep at 5:30 p.m. on Monday. Worcester Prep will roll in looking for their fourth straight win, something Delmarva Christian surely won't give up without a fight. As for Sussex Central, they will challenge Caesar Rodney at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday.