Nothing is sweeter than beating one of your rivals. For the boys basketball team, there is something sweeter: beating your rival at their home. The Spartans throttled Howell North 72-41 at North this past Friday. Senior guard Ryan Howard led the team with 29 points, and senior forward Derrick Puni followed with 18 points. In the second period, the Spartans outscored North 22-4, and never gave North a chance to comeback, holding potential D-I player Kyle Lemons to a mere 11 points.

The game brought the Spartans to a record of 7-10, as they try and grasp a playoff spot with only weeks left in the season.

Last night, they played Fort Zumwalt West, and in a hard fought battle, the Spartans fell 75-73 in overtime to the Jaguars. The game was tied most of the game, but a buzzer-beater ended the Spartans hopes of a two-game win streak.

Senior Derrick Puni made a career milestone, eclipsing the 1,000 point mark in his career. The game was stopped as brief ceremony took place, led by athletic director Mr. Scott Harris. Both the home and visiting crowds gave Puni a standing ovation.

“All of a sudden, they stopped the game to recognize him,” junior Heriberto Wyatt said. Wyatt, however was displeased with the result of the game. “I hate losing games like that, when you are so close, and in one play, it’s all over,” he said.

The Spartans dropped to 7-11 on the year, although they possess the highest scoring offense in the GAC South, their defense is ranked last in the same conference. They have a chance to go 3-2 in conference play when they face Timberland Friday in a key road matchup.