The East Mecklenburg Eagles struggled with assists on Wednesday (the Independence Patriots had eight more) and sadly the final score reflected it. East Mecklenburg took a 44-39 hit to the loss column at the hands of Independence. While losing is never fun, East Mecklenburg can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 140th, while Independence is ranked 48th).
Several Eagles players turned in solid performances, despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Ahmari Hicks, who scored 15 points. Hicks is on a roll when it comes to points, as he's now scored 15 or more in the last three games he's played. Another player making a difference was Bryson Heath, who scored 16 points.
East Mecklenburg struggled to work together and finished the game with only an assist. That's the fewest assists they've managed all season.
It was another big night for Tosh Alberga, who scored 11 points along with six rebounds and four blocks for Independence. Alberga is on a roll when it comes to blocks, as he's now posted two or more in the last 14 games he's played. Yancey Thomason was another key contributor, scoring 14 points.
East Mecklenburg has not been sharp recently, as they've lost four of their last five matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 9-7 record this season. As for Independence, the win was the third in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 12-4.
East Mecklenburg will stay at home for another game and welcome Charlotte Catholic at 7:30 p.m. on January 16th. Charlotte Catholic has been dominant on offense recently, as they've racked up an incredible 191 points over their last three matchups. As for Independence, they will head out on the road to square off against Rocky River at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
