The Portsmouth Trojans have been a dominant force so far, but they're in the middle of a mini-slump at the moment. They opened the new year with a less-than-successful 61-53 loss to Chesapeake. Portsmouth lost against Chesapeake in their previous head to head back in January of 2023, too, but the margin this time around was much wider than the 56-41 score last time.
Portsmouth's defeat came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Malachi Loper, who scored 14 points along with five rebounds. Those five rebounds set a new season-high mark for him. Another player making a difference was Deandre Berry, who scored 14 points along with six rebounds.
Portsmouth's loss ended a three-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 6-2. As for Chesapeake, the victory was the fourth in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 6-3.
Portsmouth will head out on the road to face off against Ironton at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The matchup should be an exciting one, as these teams are ranked near one another in Ohio (Ironton is ranked 163rd, while Portsmouth is ranked 150th). As for Chesapeake, they will look to defend their home court on Tuesday against Fairland at 7:30 p.m.
