Basketball Preview: Mitchell Mustangs vs. East Lake Eagles
Mitchell is 0-9 against East Lake since January of 2017 but things could change on Tuesday. The Mitchell Mustangs will head out on the road to challenge the East Lake Eagles at 8:00 p.m. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.
Mitchell is headed into Tuesday's match looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their third straight game on Thursday. They took a 65-56 hit to the loss column at the hands of Cardinal Mooney.
The match pitted two dominant guards against one another in Eli Wilson and Jamaal George. George had a great game and went 6 for 15 en route to 16 points plus eight rebounds. Meanwhile, Wilson did his best for the losing side, posting 12 points plus six rebounds.
Even though they lost, Mitchell smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive rebounds in six consecutive games dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, East Lake put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their perfect season alive. They took down Countryside 64-48.
East Lake's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Jordan Bryant, who dropped a double-double on 20 points and 16 rebounds. Bryant is crushing it when it comes to rebounds: he's pulled down at least eight every time he's taken the court this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Jeremiah Cooper, who earned 20 points.
East Lake pushed their record up to 5-0 with the win, which was their 15th straight at home dating back to last season. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 67.0 points per game. As for Mitchell, they now have a losing record at 2-3.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Mitchell has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 33.6 rebounds per game. However, it's not like East Lake struggles in that department as they've been averaging 30. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Mitchell took a serious blow against East Lake in their previous matchup back in January, falling 78-47. Thankfully for Mitchell, Tyler Becker (who went 7 for 9 from beyond the arc en route to 23 points plus seven assists and seven rebounds) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
