Basketball Game Preview: Knoxville Catholic Fighting Irish vs. Ensworth Tigers

The Knoxville Catholic Fighting Irish will face off against the Ensworth Tigers on Wednesday. Knoxville Catholic knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past eight contests -- so hopefully Ensworth likes a good challenge.

Knoxville Catholic's tournament run continued when they took on McCallie on Friday. Knoxville Catholic came out on top against McCallie by a score of 66-55. The Fighting Irish haven't had any issues with the Blue Tornado recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive victory against them.

Tj Tipton

Rebounds (Career)

02/21/25 vs McCallie	14
01/18/25 vs Notre Dame	11
02/13/25 @ McCallie	10
01/14/25 @ Baylor	10
01/23/25 vs Webb	9

Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Knoxville Catholic to victory, but perhaps none more so than Tj Tipton, who dropped a double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds. Those 14 boards gave Tipton a new career-high. Cade Murphy was another key player, dropping a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds.

Meanwhile, Ensworth faced Pope John Paul II in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Friday. Ensworth fell 72-64 to Pope John Paul II. The Tigers have struggled against the Knights recently, as the game was their sixth consecutive lost matchup.

Knoxville Catholic's win bumped their record up to 21-8. As for Ensworth, their loss dropped their record down to 18-10.

Knoxville Catholic was able to grind out a solid victory over Ensworth in their previous matchup back in February of 2020, winning 66-58. Will Knoxville Catholic repeat their success, or does Ensworth have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.