North Lincoln is tied with Hickory for the top spot in boys basketball in the Western Foothills Conference while East Lincoln has joined Foard for the next two slots in the conference standings after games Friday night.

The Knights used a strong finish to win at St. Stephens 66-56. They are now 3-0 in league play, 9-3 overall.

North led 35-26 at halftime, but the Indians cut that lead to 48-46 after three quarters. North then outscored the home team 18-10 in the final period for a 10-point win.

For the Knights, four players were in double figures: Kellan Karr and Reed King with 13 each, Ty Sanders with 11, and Ben Cipriano with 10. Connor Carson and Tanner Lineberger each had 9 points and Iverson Snell had 1.

[Thanks to Coach Dennis Frye for the report.]

The East boys also won on the road, 85-63 at Fred T. Foard. The Mustangs improved to 12-2 overall, 3-1 in the conference. Foard has only won three games, but they were all in the league; they're also 3-1 in the Western Foothills, 3-11 overall. Jackson Fannon hit two three-pointers to start the game and East never trailed. He had another three-pointer to start the second half. Fannon had four three-pointers and led his team with 17 points. He also had five rebounds. The Mustangs hit a total of 10 three-pointers for the game. Palmer Crichton had 12 points and five rebounds; Houston Hartsell had 12 points and three assists. Tyler Mizzell had a season high 11 points and Mason Simmons had 10 points and four rebounds. Nathan Kuthan had 9 points; Davis Hill had 5; Keandre Walker and Kingsley Huntley each had 4; and Hampton Good had 1.

For the Tigers, Carson Bess led all scorers with 18 points; Preston Neel had 15, Holden Caldwell 14, Christian Henry 13, and Aiden Ollis 3.

East has now won four in a row over the Tigers.

[Special thanks to Chip Ashley, who provides us with complete reports on all the East Lincoln boys' games and to Nick Bringhurst for his play-by-play reports.]

In girls games Friday night, East won and North lost.

The East Lincoln girls are now 14-0, 4-0 in league play, after once again romping over a conference foe, beating the Tigers girls 70-24.
East led 21-6 after the first quarter; 43-15 at halftime; and held Foard to just two points in the third and seven in the fourth.

Emma Montanari led the way with 15 points, 6 rebounds, three steals, two assists and four blocked shots. Madison Bissinger had 12 points, three rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a steal; Kiara Anderson had 11 points, four steals, three assists and a blocked shot; Ginny Overbay had 8 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals; Taniyah Thomas also scored 8 points. Madison Self had 7, Hailey McFadden 6, Tatum Martin 2, and Kristen Legrand 1.

For Foard, Samaria Tipps scored 10, Imani Ikard 4, Gabriela Sutcliffe, Kinzer Abernathy, Lindsey Cook, Taylor Ramseur, and Heidi Heavner 2 each.

East is now 4-0 in the conference, 14-0 overall.

The North Lincoln girls lost their game at St. Stephens 50-36. They are now 1-2 in the league, 3-9 overall. The win over North gives the St. Stephens girls a 9-5 overall record, 3-1 in the league.

The Hickory boys won their game 82-58 over North Iredell Friday night to maintain the best overall record in the Western Piedmont; they are now 12-1, 3-0 in league play.

In Catawba Valley Conference play, Maiden won a pair of games at Bandys, Lincolnton won the girls game and lost the boys to West Caldwell, and West Lincoln lost both games to Newton-Conover.

The Lincolnton girls improved to 3-9 overall, 2-2 in league play, beating West Caldwell 50-27. Mackenzie Sand-Odum scored 24 points for the LHS girls; Camellia Holland had 8; Justice Smith 7; Kayden Ray and Jordyan Williams 3 each; Aidyn Armstrong and Tanlee Eley 2 apiece; and Akira Connor 1.

[Thanks to Coach Jimmy Carr for the report.]

The LHS boys led in the second period 23-20 and trailed at the half by just two points 28-26, but a third quarter drought left them behind 46-34 going into the final period and they lost the game 60-52. The Wolves are now 3-10 overall, 1-3 in the conference.

Maiden's girls improved to 5-9 overall, 2-2 in the league, with a 39-36 win at Bandys. The Maiden boys are now 12-2 overall, 3-1 in the conference, after beating the Trojans 67-51.

West Lincoln's girls had a chance to move into a tie for the top spot in the conference standings, but a cold shooting night left them with a 63-34 loss to Newton-Conover. West scored just 11 points in the first half, only three in the second period. Carolina Robinson had 11 points and Chloe Norman 10; DeeDee Wallace had 6, Calla Varner 4, and Zoey Owenby 2. Cassidy Geddes of Newton-Conover had 21 points, one of four players for her team in double figures. The West girls are now 9-4 overall, 3-1 in league play, tied with N-C for second place behind 4-0 East Burke.

[Thanks to Coach Hannah Sain Suttle for the report.]

A 32-19 halftime deficit was just too much to overcome for the West Lincoln boys, who also lost to the Red Devils 59-55. Trailing 45-34 going into the final period, the Rebels scored 21 points in the fourth quarter, but ended up losing by four points. 

For the Rebels, Jordan Truesdale and Gideon Allen each had  17 points,  Riley Bradley had 9, Lucas Howell and Zander Harrelson each scored 6. The West boys are now 1-3 in the conference, 4-9 overall.

[Thanks to Coach Steven Cheatham for the report on the West boys game.]

Maiden, Newton-Conover and Bandys boys teams are all 3-1 in the Catawba Valley; West Caldwell is 4-0.

The Cherryville girls lost to Bessemer City 66-18. Bessemer City won the boys game 76-56.

The Lincoln Charter boys played Langtree Charter Friday night; we didn't get any report.

TUESDAY JAN. 10TH
Christ the King @ Lincoln Charter
East Lincoln @ St. Stephens
Fred T. Foard @ North Lincoln
East Burke @ Lincolnton
West Caldwell @ West Lincoln
Maiden @ Bunker Hill
Cherryville @ Highland Tech
Bandys @ Newton-Conover

WEDNESDAY JAN. 11TH
Cherryville @ Pinnacle Academy

THURSDAY JAN. 12TH
North Lincoln @ Hickory

FRIDAY JAN. 13TH
Lincolnton @ Maiden
Lincoln Charter boys @ Mtn. Island Charter
West Lincoln @ East Burke
North Iredell @ East Lincoln
North Lincoln @ West Iredell
Fred T. Foard @ Hickory
Bandys @ West Caldwell

TUESDAY JAN. 17TH
North Lincoln @ East Lincoln
Lincolnton @ West Lincoln
Lincoln Charter @ Community School of Davidson
Maiden @ Newton-Conover
East Gaston @ Cherryville
Fred T. Foard @ St. Stephens
Bunker Hill @ Bandys

WEDNESDAY JAN. 18TH
Pinnacle Academy @ Cherryville
Bradford Prep @ Lincoln Charter

FRIDAY JAN. 20TH
East Lincoln @ Hickory
North Lincoln @ Statesville
Bandys @ West Lincoln
Bunker Hill @ Lincolnton
Pine Lake Prep @ Lincoln Charter
East Burke @ Maiden
Thomas Jefferson @ Cherryville
Fred T. Foard @ North Iredell