The Durham Academy Cavaliers were the 65-64 winner over the GRACE Christian Eagles when they last played one another back in November of 2022, but their luck changed this time around. Durham Academy was the victim of a rough 74-49 defeat at the hands of GRACE Christian on Thursday. Durham Academy just can't catch a break and has now endured three losses in a row.
Durham Academy's loss came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was JJ Wilcox, who scored 11 points along with five rebounds. The matchup was Wilcox's fifth in a row with at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Amare Burrus, who scored seven points.
GRACE Christian found their leader in underclassman Michael Phillips II, who went 6 for 8 from beyond the arc en route to 20 points and 0 assists. Phillips II continues to roll, besting his previous point total in each of the last three games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Steven McLeod, who scored 17 points along with six rebounds and five assists.
Durham Academy's loss ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 10-8. As for GRACE Christian, they are on a roll lately: they've won 11 of their last 13 matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 14-5 record this season.
Durham Academy will be playing in front of their home fans against NCSSM: Durham at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. NCSSM: Durham will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps North Carolina Rankings (they are ranked 578th, while Durham Academy is ranked 190th). As for GRACE Christian, they will head out on the road to face off against Cary Christian at 7:15 p.m. on Friday. Cary Christian is also coming in off of a big victory, so somebody is in for a big reversal of fortune.
