Center Roughriders Gymnasium on Tuesday, January 12, 2021 –
The Center Roughriders and Lady Roughriders High School basketball teams competed last Tuesday in both Varsity and JV basketball with visiting Palestine.
Girls Varsity action saw Center leading 15-12 at the end of the first quarter. The Lady ‘Riders held a narrow 21-19 advantage at the midway break and a 29-25 lead going into the final period.
The fourth quarter was all Palestine’s as they outscored CHS by a 19-8 point margin to take the conference win with a 44-37 advantage for the Lady Wildcats.
Ja’Kayla Parks scored 16 points for Center and teammate Aniyah Boykins added 12 points to the CHS tally.
Alaysia Fantroy led the Lady ‘Cats with 20 points.
The Lady Roughriders now have a 7-6 overall season record and they are 1-2 in District 17 4A conference action.
Boys varsity action saw Center defend their homecourt with a 60-46 win to open their conference play for this season. The Roughriders are now 7-7 this season with a 1-0 District 17 4A standing.
The ‘Riders gained an 8-5 point lead by the middle of the opening frame and they held a 14-7 advantage by the end of the first stanza. At halftime CHS led by a 26-18 margin. Center outscored Palestine 18-12 points in the third frame and led 44-30 going into the final period.
Center’s defensive aggressiveness paid off late and helped them outpace the Wildcats 16-8 points in the final quarter.
Center had three players in double digits scoring for the day. Makel Johnson led with 15, Jermaine Preston 11 and Mar Mar Evans had 10 points. Palestine had no player in double figures.
The ‘Riders and Lady ‘Riders will travel to Carthage High School to compete with the Bulldogs on Friday, January 15, 2021, at Bulldogs Gym. Tipoff for Junior Varsity teams will be at 4:30 p.m. with varsity following.
