Basketball Game Preview: Eastern Hancock Royals vs. Hagerstown Tigers

Two dominant centers in Kayden Ruble and Landon Lawson are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Eastern Hancock Royals will head out to challenge the Hagerstown Tigers at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. One thing working in Eastern Hancock's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last four matchups.

Eastern Hancock is probably headed into the contest with a chip on their shoulder considering Liberty Christian just ended the team's three-game winning streak on Tuesday. They took a 62-56 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Lions.

The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Ruble, who posted eight points in addition to ten boards and five assists. That's the most assists he has posted since back in December of 2023. Another player making a difference was Caden Powers, who earned 11 points and five rebounds.

Meanwhile, Hagerstown waltzed into their game on Tuesday with three straight wins... but they left with four. They came out on top against the Titans by a score of 60-48.

Hagerstown pushed their record up to 9-11 with the victory, which was their third straight on the road. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 70.3 points over those games. As for Eastern Hancock, their defeat dropped their record down to 13-8.

Eastern Hancock strolled past Hagerstown in their previous meeting back in February of 2024 by a score of 61-46. The rematch might be a little tougher for Eastern Hancock since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.