The Charlotte Elite Academy Soldiers came tearing into Friday's contest with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 23.8 points) and they left with even more momentum. They enjoyed a cozy 66-49 victory over North Hills Christian. Given Charlotte Elite Academy's advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 128th, while North Hills Christian is ranked 353rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Jared Taylor was his usual excellent self, scoring 23 points. That makes it three consecutive games in which he has scored at least 25% of Charlotte Elite Academy's points. Another player making a difference was Jordan King, who scored 15 points.
Despite the loss, North Hills Christian still got an impressive performance from Champion Hayden, who dropped a double-double on 27 points and ten rebounds. The matchup was Hayden's 15th in a row with at least ten points. Jerrod Drye Jr. was another key contributor, scoring 13 points along with three steals.
Charlotte Elite Academy has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven contests, which provided a nice bump to their 7-3 record this season. As for North Hills Christian, they have not been sharp recently, as they've lost five of their last six contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 9-6 record this season.
Charlotte Elite Academy and Northwestern will face off at 2:30 p.m. on December 30, 2023 without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. North Hills Christian and Lincoln Charter will face off at 11:30 a.m. on December 30, 2023 without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. One thing working in Lincoln Charter's favor is that they have posted big point totals in their last five matchups.
