Both the varsity and JV men’s basketball squads were in action Tuesday, sparring off with cross-town and Quad City 7 conference rival Apex.
While the JV team is coming off a first place finish in the Randolph-Asheboro JV Holiday Classic tournament, the varsity team was left hungry after back-to-back losses in their Holiday break tournament.
Both teams capitalized against Apex, with the JV team earning a 48-35 win, extending their win streak to five, and improving their record to 9-3 on the season. The varsity team also schooled Apex for their second conference win of the season, with the final number for the Gators ending up at 62 to Apex’s 48.
A big part of the varsity Gators’ victory was their ability to hit from deep, knocking down 12 three-pointers, their most in almost exactly a year going back to last year’s January 7th game against Holly Springs, where they hit 13 threes. Senior Garrett Midkiff led the Gators offensively with 16 points, also contributing across the floor with 7 assists and 5 rebounds.
“Overall, we were working really hard to find the open man and passing up some shots for even better shots,” said Midkiff, Green Level’s second-leading scorer with 10.5 points per game.
“We hit a couple threes early, which helped our confidence to keep shooting and also spread out the defense, making it easier to attack the paint,” Midkiff observed.
The Cougars, however, showed some signs of life in the third quarter, putting up 21 points and tying the game at 42, before the varsity Gators overcame Apex in the fourth quarter, outscoring them 13-6.
“I thought we handled ball pressure really well in the fourth quarter,” Midkiff noted, adding, “we were able to control the clock for the entire quarter, which made it hard for Apex to get any momentum going.”
After a win against Apex, both JV and varsity’s schedules reside mostly against conference opponents, giving both teams a chance to build on their record after a tough early-season slate.
“We played a really good team out there, in Apex, and I think it gives us more confidence going into the rest of the season, and we’re hoping that it can snowball into bigger wins,” said Midkiff.
Both JV and varsity teams look to continue their new year resolutions on the court Friday, travelling to Jordan for another conference matchup. The JV game is set to tip-off at 5:00 PM, and the varsity game is scheduled for 8:00 PM.
