The James River boys pulled out a low-scoring basketball game against Waynesboro Monday. The Knights won 30-26 in Springwood.
This game was close throughout. It was tied at 15-15 at the half, and the Knights scored 15 in the second half while holding the Little Giants to 11. Trey Taylor led River with 16 points.
The win snapped a three game losing streak for the Knights. River lost to Parry McCluer, Bath County and Riverheads last week in three close games.
“A couple games decided by a possession or two that didn’t go our way is on par for a team without much experience,” said coach Ethan Humphries. “I think we take home a few of those games we lost if this was late in the season, but we knew it would be a challenge for our youth to process all that transpires with having seven games in 13 days.”
River lost to Parry McCluer at home last week, 47-41, after losing by 35 in Buena Vista. The game was tied at the half before the Knights got into foul trouble. Taylor led with 17 points.
Photos by Leigh Downey
A day later, at home against Bath County, the Chargers held off the Knights for a 44-41 win. River led by two with 15 seconds to go and had the ball, but a turnover and a lost offensive rebound off a Bath County free throw for a three point possession led to a loss in the closing seconds. Ben Lawson led River with 10 points.
On Friday River played their third home game of the week and dropped a 49-42 decision to Riverheads. The Knights fell behind 12-0 at the outset and outscored the Gladiators the rest of the way but couldn’t catch up. Taylor had 17 points, six rebounds, five assists and five steals.
“The speed at which we had to adapt is something I expected us to struggle with,” said Humphries. “However, based upon the metrics we deem most important to success, we are trending in the right direction. Our guys’ hearts and minds are in the right place and that’s our biggest attributor to our improvement. We’ll have a great week of growth at practice and come back to re-test ourselves with Liberty and Bath.”
River is off the rest of the week, returning on Tuesday, December 19, with a home game against Liberty and a trip to Bath on December 21.