Green Wave came up short with Kirk

By Will Dickins
The North Delta boys’ basketball team hosted Kirk Academy Tuesday night for Junior High and Senior High games.
The Green Wave pulled out a victory in Junior High (40-25) but could not hang on in the Senior High game (52-40).
The 52-40 loss for the Senior High was closer than the score indicated.  With each team needing a win, the game was physical and highly competitive.
North Delta hung around like an annoying mosquito but could not ever find the place to bite or way to take the lead.
The first half was one that North Delta would like to forget as they fell behind 27-14.  The second quarter saw the Green Wave only score four points.  It is hard to win with a bad quarter like that one.   This gave the Raiders from Grenada the lead they needed to control the game.
Both teams played man to man defense which sped up the pace.
North Delta usually sits back in the 2-3 zone, but Kirk had the ability to find open shooters from beyond the arc with enough consistency to force the Green Wave to man up.
North Delta did come soaring back in the second half and had a chance to make it a game by getting the lead down to eight with fewer than three minutes left.
Kirk Academy was in the bonus for most of the fourth quarter, though.
That resulted in the Raiders getting the majority of their points from the free throw line.
The second quarter to go along with the foul trouble of the Green Wave showed to be enough to keep them from earning the victory Tuesday night.
They fell behind and showed glimpses of a comeback but came up short in the end.
Kirk Academy came away with the 52-40 win with consistent play on both ends.
Without the second quarter, the game would have gone down to the wire.
The Green Wave showed resiliency.  It showed in the stats with an uptick in blocks and assists.
They were a team moving the ball around and playing good help defense.  They ended with 12 assists and 5 blocks as a team.
Alex Greenlee led the team in scoring with 12 points.  He also had seven rebounds, one steal, two assists, and one block.
Behind him were: Joseph Cox, six points and one steal;  Cole Devazier, five points, two rebounds, and four assists;
Nelson Howell, eight points, five rebounds, and two blocks;  Luke Lewis, three points, one rebound, one steal, five assists, and one block; Miles Garner, four points, two rebounds, and three steals; and Ripkin Mitchel with two points as time winded down with a turnaround fadeaway shot from mid range.
They are back in action Tuesday night to host Bayou Academy for senior night.  Games start at 3:30.