There's no place like home for the Southeast Alamance Stallions, who bounced back after a tough loss on the road last Monday. They came out on top against Athens Drive by a score of 59-47 on Thursday. Given Southeast Alamance's advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 111th, while Athens Drive is ranked 336th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Southeast Alamance found their leader in underclassman Shaniya Paylor, who dropped a double-double on 20 points and ten rebounds. That makes it three consecutive games in which Paylor has scored at least 25% of Southeast Alamance's points. Another player making a difference was Natalie Lopez, who scored nine points along with three steals.
Several Jaguars players turned in solid performances, despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Quincie Toran, who scored 23 points. The contest was Toran's ninth in a row with at least ten points. Makenzie Kelly was another key contributor, scoring nine points along with six assists and five steals.
Athens Drive struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only two offensive rebounds. That's the fewest offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
Southeast Alamance's win was their fifth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 6-2. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 55.4 points per game. As for Athens Drive, they have fallen quite a ways from their 19-9 record last season and are now at 3-6.
Both teams are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Southeast Alamance won't have much time to rest: their next contest is against Northwest Guilford at 6:30 p.m. on December 29th. Northwest Guilford will be looking to extend their current three-game winning streak. Athens Drive won't have much time to rest: their next matchup is against Orange at 12:30 p.m. on December 29th. That game will pit two of the most dominant against one another: Evelyn George and Kelly.
