Franklin hoops teams dominate in ‘Backyard Brawl’

Published 12:00 pm Wednesday, January 11, 2023

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The Peggy H. Wilkins Gymnasium at Franklin High School was packed Monday, Jan. 9, for the annual Backyard Brawl on the Hardcourts, and the varsity boys and girls games left the home crowd with plenty to cheer about. 

This rivalry showdown between Southampton High School and Franklin High School is the continuation of the bragging rights of sports for the Franklin area.

BOYS BASKETBALL

In the boys game, the home team was up 18-0 before the Indians were able to score their first basket. By halftime the Broncos had pushed their lead to 39-14. After the game went to a running clock in the fourth quarter, the Broncos ultimately won with a score of 68-26.

Franklin (11-1) was led in scoring by senior point guard Derrick Perry with 29 points followed by junior center Chaevon Torrance with 16 points and junior shooting guard Kaden Bailey with 15 points. For the Indians (0-9), freshman Adin Brown was the leading scorer with 10 points.

In remarks after the game, Broncos Head Coach Robby Cutchins said, “It was just a great overall team effort all the way around. We are coming off of a really big game this past Saturday (when) we defeated Nansemond River in a big classic down in Chesapeake and Western Branch.”

Nansemond River High School, a Virginia High School League Class 5 school, entered the Saturday, Jan. 7, game with a 7-1 overall record but ended up falling 60-53 to the VHSL Class 1 Broncos.

“I thought the boys turned right around after getting a good day’s rest on Sunday and came back today and answered the call,” Cutchins said Monday. “You know when Franklin and Southampton get on the floor, I have always said, ‘You can kinda throw everything out the window.’ I thought the boys responded good. They came out the gate ready to play, therefore we could get everybody on the floor.” 

GIRLS BASKETBALL

The Franklin Lady Broncos had no problems Monday against the Southampton Lady Indians, as the home team won with a score of 41-13.

Lady Broncos Head Coach Dennis Sumblin said afterward, “We had a good game. We came out and executed well and kept the pressure on them the whole ballgame and never let up. We are improving with every game. We are practicing hard to be able to defeat every team that had previously defeated us. We are shooting and rebounding well.”

Junior guard Ariana Picot led Franklin (7-5) in scoring with 18 points. For the Lady Indians (1-6), junior guard Nic’Kylah Young led in scoring with four points.

The Lady Broncos entered the game Monday fresh off a dominant victory Friday, Jan. 6, at Central Lunenburg High School. Franklin won that game 53-27.

Statistical leaders for the Lady Broncos on Friday included Picot, who recorded her third double-double of the season. She had 25 points, 10 rebounds, five steals, three assists and one blocked shot. Senior guard Arbani Wiggins had 13 points, two boards, four steals and two assists. Junior forward/center Roshanda Hoskie contributed nine points, 11 rebounds, two steals and three blocks, while sophomore forward/center Mykira Barrett added four points, 12 rebounds, four steals, five assists and three blocks.