The John Wall Holiday Invitational carried onward with a consolation bracket contest between Salisbury High School and North Pitt High School. Prior to this showdown, Salisbury lost to Panther Creek and narrowly edged out Millbrook while North Pitt fell to Apex Friendship and beat Clayton. Both teams entered this game with split records against quality teams, but they each still had something to prove. The Hornets came into the event with a perfect record, and still remain one of the most talented squads in the field. Similarly, North Pitt has been a difficult matchup for all types of opponents given their electric pieces and general chemistry on both ends of the floor. All signs pointed to a highly entertaining contest.
It didn’t take long for both teams to get comfortable and start trading buckets in the opening quarter. Salisbury came out of the gate assertive, but still trailed 7-10 to North Pitt after the first eight minutes of play. After a strong start, North Pitt continued to keep their foot on the accelerator. Their ability to push transition play, touch the paint, and convert offensively allowed them to enter halftime with a 26-17 lead. Following the break, the Panthers simply continued to dominate. Although it got more competitive as the quarter went along, North Pitt held a double-digit lead entering the fourth period. In the final eight minutes of play, the Panthers held tough to secure a 42-32 victory over Salisbury.