Basketball Game Preview: Baldwin Braves vs. Aquinas Fightin' Irish

The Baldwin Braves just played yesterday, but they'll still head out to face the Aquinas Fightin' Irish at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Baldwin is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 62.1 points per game this season.

Baldwin is probably headed into the match with a chip on their shoulder considering Cross Creek just ended the team's six-game winning streak on Thursday. They fell just short of the Razorbacks by a score of 49-47.

Despite the defeat, Baldwin got top-tier performance from Deven Nelson, who went 8 of 19 on his way to 19 points along with eight rebounds and four blocks. The dominant performance gave Nelson a new career-high in blocks. Another player making a difference was Karez Demory, who posted ten points and three steals.

Even though they lost, Baldwin smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in seven consecutive games.

Meanwhile, Aquinas played a tough contest on Tuesday in which they were outscored in every quarter. They were outmatched by Academy of Richmond County and fell 76-45. The Fightin' Irish were down 63-35 at the end of the third quarter, and things only got worse from there.

Baldwin's loss ended a five-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 17-6. As for Aquinas, they dropped their record down to 5-18 with the defeat, which was their seventh straight on the road.

Everything came up roses for Baldwin against Aquinas in their previous matchup back in January, as the squad secured a 78-37 win. In that match, Baldwin amassed a halftime lead of 42-12, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Friday.