Basketball Game Preview: Grainger Grizzlies vs. Austin-East Roadrunners

The Grainger Grizzlies will be taking part in a tournament against the Austin-East Roadrunners at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: both posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.

Grainger will face Austin-East after dropping another heartbreaker against Cocke County on Tuesday, which marked the second time in a row the team's come within 3.1 of beating them. Grainger fell just short of Cocke County by a score of 67-65. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest loss the Grizzlies have suffered since November 22, 2023.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Austin-East, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Saturday. They came out on top against Morristown-Hamblen West by a score of 68-58 on Monday. The win was a breath of fresh air for the Roadrunners as it put an end to their five-game losing streak.

Grainger has been struggling recently as they've lost six of their last seven matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 2-8 record this season. Those losses can't be blamed on the team's offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 52.1 points per game. As for Austin-East, their victory bumped their record up to 3-7.

Grainger took a serious blow against Austin-East in their previous meeting back in December of 2018, falling 70-36. Can Grainger avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.