Preview: Paw Paw Pirates vs. Mountain View Christian Academy Conquerors
Paw Paw has played every game this season on their home court, but they'll have to hit the road on Tuesday. They will challenge the Mountain View Christian Academy Conquerors at 6:00 p.m. One thing working in Paw Paw's favor is that they have posted big point totals every time they've taken the court this season.
Last Wednesday, Paw Paw strolled past Salisbury Elk Lick with points to spare, taking the game 66-48.
Paw Paw's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Donavan Tanouye led the charge by dropping a double-double on ten points and 14 rebounds. Tanouye is absolutely dominating the steal category: he's posted at least two every time he's taken the court this season. Greyson Corbett was another key contributor, scoring 20 points along with eight rebounds.
Meanwhile, Mountain View Christian Academy lost to Massanutten Military Academy at home by a decisive 43-25 margin on Tuesday. The loss unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Mountain View Christian Academy in their matchups with Massanutten Military Academy: they've now lost three in a row.
Despite the loss, Mountain View Christian Academy had strong showings from Devin Michael, who scored 13 points along with five rebounds, and Gaven Vaughn, who scored five points. Those 13 points set a new season-high mark for him.
Even though they lost, Mountain View Christian Academy were smashing the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive rebounds. That's the most offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
Paw Paw pushed their record up to 3-0 with that victory, which was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 65.4 points per game. As for Mountain View Christian Academy, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-4.
Keep an eye on the arc in Tuesday's match: Paw Paw have been dynamite from deep this season, having only made 33.3% of their threes per game. It's a different story for Mountain View Christian Academy, though, as they've only made 27.2% of their threes per game this season. Given Paw Paw's sizeable advantage in that area, Mountain View Christian Academy will need to find a way to close that gap.
Paw Paw took their win against Mountain View Christian Academy in their previous matchup last Thursday by a conclusive 55-33. The rematch might be a little tougher for Paw Paw since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
