The Palisades Pumas's road trip will continue as they head out to face the Kings Mountain Mountaineers at 7:30 p.m. on December 27th. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, both teams will really light up the scoreboard on Wednesday.
Winning is just a little bit easier when you work as a team to rack up nine more assists than your opponent, a fact Palisades proved on Friday. They came out on top against Sugar Creek by a score of 64-55. Given Palisades' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 159th, while Sugar Creek is ranked 378th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Palisades found their leader in underclassman Kingston Henry, who scored 21 points along with six assists. Those 21 points set a new season-high mark for him. Jyler Standifer was another key contributor, scoring 12 points.
Meanwhile, Kings Mountain was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap on Tuesday as they fell 77-73 to Ashbrook.
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was J'myun Huskey, who dropped a double-double on 18 points and 13 rebounds. That's the first time this season that he pulled down eight or more rebounds. Another player making a difference was Bradley Floyd, who scored 19 points along with eight rebounds and five assists.
Even though they lost, Kings Mountain were smashing the offensive glass and finished the game with 19 offensive rebounds. That's the most offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
Palisades is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last eight contests, which provided a nice bump to their 7-4 record this season. As for Kings Mountain, their defeat dropped their record down to 4-2.
Wednesday's matchup is shaping up to be a scrappy match: Palisades have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 35.2 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Kings Mountain, though, as they've been averaging only 32.5 rebounds per game. Given Palisades' sizeable advantage in that area, Kings Mountain will need to find a way to close that gap. Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more basketball content.
