Basketball Game Preview: Collinwood Trojans vs. Richland Raiders

The Collinwood Trojans will wrap up 2024 with a road trip to face off against the Richland Raiders at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Collinwood knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past four games -- so hopefully Richland likes a good challenge.

Collinwood is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They breezed by Colbert County to the tune of 70-33 on Thursday. The Trojans have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won three contests by 33 points or more this season.

Meanwhile, in a tight match that could have gone either way, Richland made off with a 49-48 win over Lawrence County. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Raiders.

Richland's win came from a few key players Collinwood will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Bailey Blair, who went 8 of 17 on her way to 21 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Katelyn Bass, who posted 14 points.

Collinwood pushed their record up to 4-2 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 67.7 points per game. As for Richland, their record is now 7-1.

Collinwood ended up a good deal behind Richland in their previous meeting back in January of 2023, losing 65-47. Can Collinwood avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.