Huss has enjoyed the comforts of home their last two games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will face off against the North Gaston Wildcats at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Huss has been getting the ball to fall more lately as they've increased their point totals each of their last three games.
Huss pushed their score all the way to 70 on Tuesday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They fell just short of Ashbrook by a score of 72-70. While losing is never fun, Huss can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 227th, while Ashbrook is ranked 36th).
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the most dominant came from Satchelle Pettis, who scored 21 points along with five rebounds and five steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points he has scored all season. Another player making a difference was Zaiyir 'Zii' Phillips, who scored eight points along with seven assists and seven steals.
Meanwhile, North Gaston's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Tuesday after their sixth straight loss. They suffered a tough 83-63 loss at the hands of South Point. North Gaston has struggled against South Point recently, as their contest on Tuesday was their seventh consecutive lost matchup.
Despite their defeat, North Gaston saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Markell Carothers, who scored 18 points along with three steals, was perhaps the best of all. Carothers is on a roll when it comes to points, as he's now scored 15 or more in the last six games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Jurnee Lattimore, who scored 14 points along with three steals.
Huss has fallen quite a ways from their 18-9 record last season and are now at 5-10. As for North Gaston, their defeat was their fourth straight at home, which dropped their record down to 3-14.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Huss have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 29.4 rebounds per game. However, it's not like North Gaston struggles in that department as they've been averaging 24.6 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Huss didn't have too much breathing room in their game against North Gaston in their previous meeting back in December of 2023, but they still walked away with a 55-51 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Huss since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
