Playing at home in Norwood, the South Stanly Bulls boys’ basketball team narrowly took down a local rival as they defeated West Stanly 46-44 on Friday night.
The Bulls (4-0) held a 23-18 lead over the Colts (2-2) at halftime as a back-and-forth game ensued for the next two quarters.
With a 42-42 tie late in the fourth quarter, South used a clutch shot and a subsequent free throw to go up by three points. West junior Gavyn Efird pulled his team within one point, but the Bulls managed a defensive stand that soon gave them the ball back.
Head coach Sean Whitley’s South Stanly team now stands unbeaten in four games with previous wins over Central Academy (1-4), South Davidson (1-3) and South Rowan (0-3).
West has a pair of wins over Gray Stone (0-4) and Albemarle (0-3) followed by losses to Mount Pleasant (2-3) and the Bulls.
Returning to the road, the Bulls played the Forest Hills Yellow Jackets (1-1) on Tuesday and they will now host the North Moore Mustangs (2-0) on Friday. Meanwhile, the Colts returned home to play the Charlotte Latin Hawks (2-4) on Tuesday and Albemarle on Friday.
North Stanly 68, Uwharrie Charter 64
Over the weekend, the North Stanly boys (4-1) won their third straight game as they slid past Uwharrie Charter (5-2) on the road in a 68-64 finish.
The Comets’ victory was the Eagles’ first home loss of the season and second consecutive loss after five straight wins to start the year. In just a short amount of time, North already has over a quarter of the wins it had in last season’s 13-12 campaign.
Moving forward, North traveled to face the Anson Bearcats (2-0) on Tuesday and will host the South Davidson Wildcats (1-3) on Friday.
Chatham Charter 70, Albemarle 61
Albemarle’s rough start to the season continued on Nov. 28 as the Bulldogs fell in a nine-point road loss at Chatham Charter.
While the Bulldogs held a 33-26 lead over the Knights (5-3) at halftime, Chatham Charter roared back with a ferocious third quarter where it outscored Albemarle 27-3. Leading 53-36 heading into the fourth quarter, the Knights allowed the Bulldogs to inch closer but held on for a 70-61 finish.
Albemarle played at North Rowan (1-1) on Tuesday and will travel to Red Cross to play West Stanly on Friday.
Anson 71, Gray Stone 29
Powered by a 24-point third quarter, the Anson Bearcats (2-0) pulled away to a 71-29 road win over the Gray Stone Knights over the weekend.
Stuck in an extensive rut, the Knights are still searching for their first victory since a 72-60 home win over South Davidson on Jan. 28, 2020; they have yet to score over 30 points in a game this season.
The team will host North Moore on Thursday before heading to face the Langtree Charter Lions (0-5) on Monday.