The Southview Cougars will head out to take on the Anthony Wayne Generals at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday.
Last Thursday, Southview lost to Ross on the road by a 50-32 margin. The loss continues a trend for the Cougars in their matchups with the Little Giants: they've now lost five in a row.
Southview's defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of Alaina Hedden, who posted five points, and Jordan Evans, who put up five points. The dominant performance also gave Hedden a new career-high in steals (two).
Meanwhile, Anthony Wayne came tearing into Thursday's contest with ten straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 47.1 points), and they left with even more momentum. They claimed a resounding 68-26 victory over the Wildcats. The Generals have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 18 matchups by 27 points or more this season.
Southview better keep an eye on Elise Bender. She was instrumental in Anthony Wayne's win, almost dropping a double-double with 23 points and nine steals. Bender's evening made it 17 games in a row in which she has scored at least 17 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Brooke Bender, who had 11 points.
Anthony Wayne smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 12 offensive boards in three consecutive games.
Anthony Wayne's win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 19-2. The wins came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 20.3 points over those games. As for Southview, their loss dropped their record down to 6-16.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Southview has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 26 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Anthony Wayne struggles in that department as they've been averaging 27.3 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Southview took a serious blow against Anthony Wayne in their previous matchup back in November of 2024, falling 76-11. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Bender, who went 10-for-16 to rack up 23 points and five steals. Now that Southview knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.
