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When you think of sports rivalries, a lot of matchups come to mind.

There’s Duke vs. North Carolina and the Tar Heels vs. NC State. On the NFL level, just about any division rival is a heated one. Same goes for MLB, NBA and NHL.

On the high school level in North Carolina, there are dozens of rivalries between schools that stretch back half a century or more. And while some sports teams don’t always play each other in every sport, when they do, it makes for an interesting night.

Tuesday, Northside and Southside revisited their rivalry on the basketball court. Southside won the junior varsity boys game, 63-57, while Northside took the varsity boys and girls. They’ve already met this season in football, volleyball and wrestling. There will be other contests to come since both are in the Coastal Plains Conference.

Here’s a sample of comments from the coaches and players on both sides of the Pamlico River about Tuesday’s games and what makes a rivalry just that between the two schools.

Jared Adams, Northside boys basketball coach and athletic director

“Yeah, when a rivalry game hits, everybody’s high energy, high energy environment, kids look forward to it. So everybody’s gonna be all in for every play, every rep.”

Otis Harrell, Southside boys basketball coach

“We’ve come a long way, we wanted to win this ball game. This was a game, I think, that we would have boosted our morale, and we would have had good things to work with and work forward to from here on out. We still have good things that we can work on from here on out.

Milton Ruffin, Southside girls basketball coach

“We were in a hostile environment. We played tough in the environment that we were in. And they (his team) don’t have anything to put their head down or hold their head down on.

“I think we did a great job. And we just didn’t come out with a W. At the end, the ball didn’t bounce our way.

Piper Johnson, Northside girls basketball player

Knowing some of these girls, it becomes like a personal battle, fighting for your school.

OJ Cahoon, Northside girls basketball player

“Well, I think all those aspects come into play with it being our county rival. And the first conference game, I think, it is definitely one of our biggest games. And with a big crowd, it’s fun to play in, and I enjoy it a lot.”