Preview: Decatur Seahawks vs. Bennett Clippers
Decatur and Bennett are an even 5-5 against one another since February of 2018, but not for long. The Decatur Seahawks will be playing at home against the Bennett Clippers at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday. Decatur will be looking to keep their 15-game home win streak alive.
Decatur pushed their score all the way to 62 on Thursday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They fell just short of Snow Hill by a score of 64-62. The loss put an end to Decatur's undefeated start to the season.
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the most dominant came from Brycen Coleman, who scored 17 points along with seven rebounds. Careen Bolden was another key contributor, scoring 13 points along with six rebounds and five assists.
Meanwhile, Bennett put the finishing touches on their fifth blowout victory of the season on Thursday. They breezed by Mardela at home to the tune of 83-28. Winning may never get old, but Bennett sure is getting used to it with their fourth in a row.
Bennett can attribute much of their success to Zakai Smullen, who scored 18 points along with six assists and six rebounds, and Jace Hudson, who scored 19 points along with nine steals. Hudson hasn't dropped below 15points for five straight games. The team also got some help courtesy of Darion Collins, who scored ten points along with eight rebounds and three steals.
Decatur's loss ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 10-1. As for Bennett, their victory bumped their record up to 7-5.
Saturday's contest is shaping up to be a scrappy game: Decatur have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 40.5 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Bennett, though, as they've been averaging only 37.3 rebounds per game. Given Decatur's sizeable advantage in that area, Bennett will need to find a way to close that gap.
Decatur was able to grind out a solid victory over Bennett in their previous matchup back in December of 2023, winning 65-55. Will Decatur repeat their success, or does Bennett have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
