Riverside head coach Allen Arnold called Friday’s 62-58 win over Gaffney “a loss without actually taking a loss.”
The Warriors came out flat and didn’t execute well in any facet of that game. A scrappy Gaffney squad took Riverside to the brink before the No. 1 Warriors pulled away at the end.
Despite the W being written into the record, heads hung low after the game.
“I think the guys were upset after that one,” said Arnold. “I didn’t even have to say anything. Gaffney played their tails off, full credit to them, but we played right into their momentum… the boys were not happy with how they played.”
Riverside certainly fixed those errors over the weekend at practice.
Four days after what Arnold said was one of their worst performances of the season, the Warriors put together one of their best on Tuesday — an 84-72 home win over No. 4 Byrnes.
“Tonight was much, much, much improved,” said Arnold. “It’s as close as I’ve seen us to our best for a long time. That’s the honest truth. And that gives me hope.”
Riverside only trailed early for 43 seconds of the game. The Warriors broke out a first-half 19-point lead, and while Byrnes whittled it down to just four in the second half, a dominant performance from senior star Sebi Boyogueno kept the Rebels out of reach.
Boyogueno finished with 36 points, eight rebounds, and five assists.
“Everything was clicking for our offensive game,” said Boyogueno. “It’s really helpful having guys around me that make it easy. When I’ve got two or three guys on me, I can kick it out, and guys can hit threes.”
Senior Ben Sponaugle, who has been nursing an ankle injury, was one of those players. He finished with 15 points and delivered four huge first-half three-pointers to give Riverside its early breathing room.
Sponaugle had been struggling to get back in the swing of things after his injury, but tonight, it felt like things were back to normal for the sharp-shooter.
“Coming off this ankle sprain, I’ve been in a bit of a slump,” said Sponaugle. “But it felt great to get back into it tonight. I’ve always had the confidence to know I can shoot the ball and play. But finally, tonight, it started to show again. Credit to my teammates for setting me up with good shots.”
“Ben stepped up tonight when we needed him,” said Arnold. “15 points on some big threes, that was huge.”
Colt Fowler dropped 38 points and seven assists in the loss for Byrnes. Arnold said coming into the game, he knew both teams’ stars were going to stuff the stat sheets early and often.
It was just a matter of which team’s supporting cast stepped up bigger.
“Cam [Dather], Huck [Flinn], so many guys came in and gave us valuable minutes and helped us,” said Arnold. “There wasn’t a single person who stepped on the court for us tonight that didn’t help contribute in some way.”
Riverside has now won nine games in a row and sits atop the 5-A Region 2 standings at 6-1, 17-2 overall. With the loss, Byrnes drops to 6-1 in 5-A Region 2 play, 15-4 overall.
Riverside will travel to face Spartanburg next, and Byrnes will play at home vs. Eastside. Both games will be on Friday, Jan. 23.
For more coverage of Greer-area athletics, follow @GreerNewsSports on X.
