Basketball Preview: Starkville Academy Volunteers vs. Lamar Raiders
Starkville Academy has been on the road for four straight, but on Monday they'll finally head home. They will be taking part in a tournament against the Lamar Raiders at 2:45 p.m.
Starkville Academy is headed into the game out to prove that what happened against Leake Academy on Thursday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Starkville Academy took a blow against Leake Academy, falling 60-23. The contest marked the Volunteers' lowest-scoring match so far this season.
Meanwhile, Lamar waltzed into their matchup on Friday with four straight wins... but they left with five. They were the clear victor by a 57-35 margin over the Cougars. The Raiders have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won eight games by 22 points or more this season.
Lamar got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Blake Hart out in front who almost dropped a double-double on 23 points and nine rebounds. With that strong performance, Hart is now averaging an impressive 15.3 points per game. The team also got some help courtesy of Aryah Grace, who dropped a double-double on 15 points and 13 rebounds.
Lamar pushed their record up to 9-2 with the victory, which was their fourth straight at home. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 60.8 points per game. As for Starkville Academy, their defeat dropped their record down to 4-3.
Starkville Academy came out on top in a nail-biter against Lamar when the teams last played back in December of 2023, sneaking past 45-42. Does Starkville Academy have another victory up their sleeve, or will Lamar turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
