Basketball Recap: Rain Li's Big Game Can't Quite Lead Kirby Prep over Sterne

Kirby Prep lost against Sterne back in December of 2023 and unfortunately they wound up with the same result on Saturday. The Kirby Prep Griffins fell 58-45 to the Sterne Dolphins. While the Griffins didn't get the win, they did start the game off strong, beating the Dolphins 17-12 in the first quarter.

Several Griffins players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Rain Li, who posted 19 points and six rebounds. With that strong performance, Li is now averaging an impressive 15.6 points per game. Another player making a difference was Chris Pierce, who dropped a double-double on 12 points and ten boards.

Sterne found their leader in sophomore Andrew Jones, who dropped a double-double on 20 points and 12 boards. Those 20 points gave Jones a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Rico Duenas, who put up ten points in addition to eight steals and seven boards.

This is the second loss in a row for Kirby Prep and nudges their season record down to 1-4. As for Sterne, they now have a winning record of 2-1.

Both squads will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Kirby Prep will take on University Prep Academy in a holiday battle at at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday. As for Sterne, they will have some time to savor their win since their next game is a little ways off: they'll take on Burton at 5:30 p.m. on January 6, 2025.