Blaise Smith scored 12 points and Daelin Drake 8 to lead the Bryant White Hornets eighth grade team of Bryant Middle School to a 26-14 win over the Cabot South Panthers eighth grade team at the BMS gym on Saturday.
In a seventh grade contest, Cabot South edged the Hornets 15-12.
Both teams are scheduled to play Cabot North at home next. For the eighth grade, it’ll be on Thursday. For the seventh grade, it will be Tuesday, Jan. 27.
The eighth grade Hornets led 10-7 after a quarter then allowed Cabot South just 7 more points the rest of the game. It was 15-9 at the half, 20-11 after three periods.
“We did a pretty good job of playing our game and being the team that we need to be,” commented Hornets coach Heath Long. “I was really proud of our defensive effort, limiting Cabot to five baskets for the game and only one in the second half. We also executed well on the offensive end of the floor.”
The win improved Bryant White to 7-3 on the season.
In the seventh grade game, the Hornets managed just 2 points in the first half but held Cabot South to 7. Bryant White then outscored the Panthers 8-2 in the third quarter to take a 10-9 lead into the final period. But the scoring woes returned and the Hornets were held to just 2 in the last stanza as Cabot South eked out the win.
Keyshaun Scott led Bryant White with 5 points. Ahmad Adams added 4.
“We did a good job defensively holding them to 15 points but we really struggled offensively,” Long said. “We got more aggressive in the third quarter, which helped us get back in the game. We had some opportunities from the free throw line in the first half and did not convert, which would have kept us from having to play from behind the whole game.”
