MINT HILL, NC – The Queen’s Grant Stallions lost a hard fought basketball game to Corvian Community High School 73-66 at Carolina Courts on Friday night. This game where emotions on both sides ran high, was very competitive and well played on the hardcourt.
The matchup considered by many was between possibly the two top teams in the conference. The Cardinals won the opener, however, this new rivalry is just heating up. The two teams will meet again on January 18 at the Cardinals home court.
The game started with the Stallions making a 7-0 run, it began when senior Cyrus Faherty swished a 3-point shot from the right side of the key. However, the Stallions missed three excellent scoring opportunities on some inside shots they just could not drop through the net. Their inability throughout the contest to not finish some scoring opportunities ultimately led to the defeat. This proved to become a major factor in the final outcome.
The home team played with passion, passed the ball efficiently, push the ball up the court quickly, did a good job rebounding off the backboards at both ends of the court, and overall played solid defense. However, they must do a better job making foul shots, as ultimately this game was lost at the free-throw line down the stretch shooting a dismal 3-10, while the Cardinals connected on the majority of foul shots when it counted.
There was one controversy when the Stallions had a 9-5 lead in the first period, the Cardinals on a 5 point run took a 10-9 advantage, but the scoreboard had the game score 10-8. The official scorer did not account for a foul shot made by Lourell Covington, and the officials ruled the score was 10-8. The game continued, but fortunately, this error did not impact the outcome of the game. The half ended with the Cardinals leading 36-33.
In the second half, the two teams battled back and forth exchanging baskets. The Stallions were led by the hot hand of Kareem Weaver who scored 10 of his game-high 22 points in the third period. The period would end with the game tied at 53-53.
In the critical fourth period, the Cardinals started off hot taking a 61-58 lead with 4:30 remaining in the game. After exchanging a few key 3-point buckets made by Covington and Keion Adams, with 1:01 remaining the Cardinals still had a 6 point advantage 69-63. This is when the foul shots became a factor. The Stallions simply did not execute when they needed to most. The Cardinals shot 4-6, and the home team connected on only 2 freebees in 8 attempts in the final minute while missing a layup on a breakaway.
Like most tight basketball games the contest is won or lost at the foul line, and capitalizing on the other team’s mistakes makes those baskets count. The Stallions will travel to Union Academy on 11/22 to take on their more traditional conference rival at 7:00 pm.
