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A sluggish shooting night proved problematic Friday for Polk County, the Wolverines dropping a 44-31 decision to Patton in a Mountain Foothills 7 Conference matchup in Morganton.

Polk County dropped to 5-12 overall, 1-6 in conference play. Patton improved to 7-10, 3-4.

How it happened: Patton held Polk to just two points in the second period, building a 19-7 halftime advantage.

The Panthers then scored the first eight points of the third period to lead 28-7 before Polk began to find some offensive rhythm. The Wolverines steadily cut into Patton’s lead and sliced the deficit to six at 33-27 on an Avery Harden layup with 6:11 remaining in the game.

A Harden jumper with 4:20 remaining kept the deficit at six, 35-29, but Polk got just one more basket the rest of the game, that a Kris Littlejohn jumper with 2:58 to go, as Patton closed the game on a 9-2 run to seal the win.

The Wolverines shot 26 percent from the field in the loss.

Harden finished with nine points as did Damon Williams, a recent transfer who appeared in his first game for the Wolverines.

Littlejohn had five points, with Wayne Carson scoring four. Landen Bradley and Aaron Jackson each added two points, with Bradley grabbing seven rebounds.

Next up, Polk County hosts conference leader Hendersonville on Tuesday.