Basketball Recap: Dynamic Duo of Zaiyir 'Zii' Phillips and Jaleel Smith Lead Huss to Victory

There's no place like home for Huss, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Friday. They took down the Kings Mountain Mountaineers 81-63 on Tuesday. That's the second time they've managed to beat them this season, as they also won 75-70 back in January.

Huss was led to victory by Jaleel Smith and Zaiyir 'Zii' Phillips. Smith almost dropped a double-double on 27 points and nine steals, while Phillips shot 5-for-7 from downtown and dropped a double-double on 21 points and ten assists. The match was Smith's eighth in a row with at least ten points. Fred Nelson was another key player, putting up 12 points.

They weren't the only one working in the assists department: Huss was working as a unit and finished the game with 23 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Kings Mountain only racked up 12 assists.

Despite the loss, Kings Mountain saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Ethan Daniel went 6 for 14 on his way to 15 points in addition to six assists and six rebounds. Those six assists set a new season-high mark for Daniel. Another player making a difference was Xavier Hutchens, who almost dropped a double-double on 17 points and nine boards.

Huss is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last eight games, which provided a nice bump to their 13-6 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 71.6 points per game. As for Kings Mountain, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 12-9.

Huss and Kings Mountain should be looking forward to their upcoming games as both have a sizable advantage in the MaxPreps North Carolina Rankings. Huss will take on South Point at 7:30 p.m. on Friday up 131 places (76 vs. 207). Meanwhile, Kings Mountain (ranked 156th) will meet North Gaston (ranked 478th) at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.