Basketball Recap: Providence Grove Comes Up Short

After flying high against River Mill last Friday, Providence Grove came back down to earth. The Providence Grove Patriots came up short against the Leadership Academy Falcons on Saturday, falling 70-48. While losing is never fun, the Patriots can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 367th, while the Falcons are ranked 128th).

Despite the loss, Providence Grove still got an impressive performance from Will Dabbs, who posted 20 points and five steals. The contest was Dabbs' seventh in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Stephen Beeson, who had eight points and 11 rebounds.

Even though they lost, Providence Grove smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 15 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in three consecutive matches.

Caden Ryker continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines for Leadership Academy, going 8 of 14 on his way to 22 points along with five rebounds and four steals. Ryker has been hot for a while, having posted two or more steals the last 11 times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Will Bovender, who made all 5 shots he took to post 12 points in addition to five assists and five boards.

Providence Grove's loss dropped their record down to 5-7. As for Leadership Academy, the win keeps them at an undefeated 10-0.

Providence Grove will get a bit of extra time to process the defeat as their next game is a ways off. They'll take on Trinity at 7:30 p.m. on January 7, 2025. As for Leadership Academy, they will challenge Starmount at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.