Preview: Cole Cougars vs. Great Hearts Northern Oaks Griffins
Cole is on a eight-game streak of home wins, while Great Hearts Northern Oaks is on a three-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Cole Cougars will take on the Great Hearts Northern Oaks Griffins at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both teams come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Last Tuesday, Cole earned a 54-47 victory over Randolph.
Cole's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Kenny Atunrase led the charge by dropping a double-double on 11 points and 14 rebounds. Atunrase hasn't dropped below 11 rebounds for four straight games. Another player making a difference was Brennan Skaggs, who scored 11 points.
Meanwhile, even though Nixon-Smiley scored an imposing 55 points on Tuesday, Great Hearts Northern Oaks still came out on top. Great Hearts Northern Oaks took their matchup against Nixon-Smiley 66-55.
Caden Collins continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, scoring 21 points along with six assists and three steals. He has been hot recently, having posted 15 or more points the last eight times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Ryan Matson, who dropped a double-double on 15 points and 14 rebounds.
Cole is on a roll lately: they've won 16 of their last 17 contests, which provided a nice bump to their 25-9 record this season. As for Great Hearts Northern Oaks, their win bumped their record up to 19-11.
Friday's contest is shaping up to be a masterclass in shooting: Cole have been dynamite from deep this season, having made 45.8% of their threes per game. However, it's not like Great Hearts Northern Oaks struggles in that department as they've made 41.7% of their threes this season. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Cole beat Great Hearts Northern Oaks 60-47 when the teams last played back in January. Does Cole have another victory up their sleeve, or will Great Hearts Northern Oaks turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
