Basketball Game Preview: Air Academy Kadets vs. Lewis-Palmer Rangers

The Air Academy Kadets will challenge the Lewis-Palmer Rangers at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday. The timing isn't great for Air Academy: they have been struggling with three straight losses at home, while Lewis-Palmer has snatched up three consecutive wins on the road.

Having struggled with nine defeats in a row, Air Academy turned things around against Coronado on Saturday. They had just enough and edged the Cougars out 49-46. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Kadets have posted since December 5, 2024.

Air Academy relied on the efforts of Brody Winnett, who went 6 of 12 en route to 15 points along with seven rebounds and six steals, and Tommy Tygart, who went 6 for 15 on his way to 16 points. The dominant performance gave Winnett a new career-high in steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Kaden Mai, who posted four points and three steals.

Air Academy smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in three consecutive games.

Meanwhile, Lewis-Palmer blew past Harrison, posting a 71-39 win.

Lewis-Palmer is also on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last nine contests, which provided a massive bump to their 10-7 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 60.4 points per game. As for Air Academy, their victory ended a nine-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 3-12.

Air Academy was dealt a bruising 65-37 loss at the hands of Lewis-Palmer in their previous matchup back in January. That match was all but decided by halftime, at which point Air Academy was down 34-10.