Outscoring their rivals in every quarter, Landrum handily defeated Polk County, 83-54, in varsity men’s basketball at Landrum on Saturday, Jan. 9.

The Cardinals extended their season mark to 11-3 overall. They’re 4-0 in the region. This Tuesday evening, the Cardinals face another great region team when they host Blacksburg, also 4-0 in region play. Game time is set for 7:30. On Friday, Jan. 15, Powdersville, another region rival, comes to Landrum.

Polk fell to 3-11 overall. The Wolverines, 1-3 in the Western Highlands Conference, face Hendersonville, a WHC rival (4-8 overall, and 1-4 in the WHC) on Friday, Jan. 15. Men’s action is set to begin at 8 p.m.

“We played a good game defensively,” said Cardinals’ head coach Lyn Smith. “Going up against a superstar like (Polk’s) Jamal (Wheeler), we had to play tough. We’ve been playing real good lately.”

The Cardinals, who never trailed in the contest, led 21-10, 41-26, and 62-40 after quarters one through three, respectively.

The Wolverines maintained their typical high-energy game, but the Cardinals’ defense and rebounding kept Polk out of the driver’s seat.

Four Cardinals scored in double figures: game co-leaders Jacob Corn and Foster Bridges with 17 points apiece, Trey Smith with 16 and Payton McCullough with 12. Jamal Wheeler with 15 led the Wolverines, followed by Daniel Painter with 10. Painter was hot from three-point range near the baseline.

Bridges also hauled down nine Cardinal rebounds. Smith made four steals in the intense game, where the ball often changed hands quickly. Smith also fed eight assists.

Early on, the Cardinals built a 14-10 lead, and quickly forged ahead. Soon after, Bridges drove to the hoop for two, and Landrum led, 19-10.

While Landrum’s nearly seamless defense held Wheeler more or less in check, the Cardinals could not stop him. Early in the second quarter, Wheeler stole the ball, raced to the Polk basket and jammed in two points, to close the gap to 21-17. Later that period, Smith canned a three-pointer to boost the hosts’ lead to 35-20. That was not Wheeler’s last jam, nor was the three-pointer Smith’s last.

In the fourth quarter, Landrum boosted its lead from 62-40 to 71-41, and led by about 30 points from there out.