The Evans Trojans's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Thursday after their fourth straight loss. They opened the new year with a less-than-successful 40-32 defeat to Tohopekaliga. While losing is never fun, Evans can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 533rd, while Tohopekaliga is ranked 196th).
Evans' loss came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was JaKayla Slater, who scored 12 points along with six rebounds. Slater is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last three games she's played. Carmen Roundtree was another key contributor, scoring nine points along with seven rebounds.
Evans' defeat was their fourth straight on the road, which bumped their record down to 2-11. Those losses could be blamed on the team's offensive performance across that stretch, as they only averaged 23.8 points per game. As for Tohopekaliga, the win was the sixth in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 8-1.
Both squads will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Evans is on the road again on Friday and play against Liberty at 6:30 p.m. on January 5th. As for Tohopekaliga, they will take on University at 7:30 p.m. on Monday.
