Preview: Rickards Raiders vs. Columbia Tigers
Rickards is on a seven-game streak of home wins, while Columbia is on a three-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Rickards Raiders will take on the Columbia Tigers at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Rickards posted their biggest victory since December 13, 2023 on Saturday. They blew past Gainesville 44-21.
Genesis Henry was her usual excellent self, dropping a double-double on 23 points and 12 rebounds. That makes it three consecutive games in which she has scored at least a third of Rickards' points. Another player making a difference was Jariyah Jordan, who scored 11 points along with six rebounds and three steals.
Meanwhile, Columbia was fully in charge on Friday, breezing past Suwannee 67-35 on the road. With Columbia ahead 39-18 at the half, the match was all but over already.
Columbia can attribute much of their success to JOLENA GARDNER, who scored 20 points along with five rebounds and three steals, and AYESHA BROXEY, who dropped a double-double on 28 points and ten rebounds. As a matter of fact, that's the most points BROXEY has scored all season. ERIEL BAKER was another key contributor, scoring eight points along with seven steals and six assists.
Rickards' victory bumped their record up to 13-4. As for Columbia, they are on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 11-6 record this season.
Saturday's contest will pit two of the most dominant guards against one another: Henry and GARDNER. Henry has been dynamite this season: she has averaged 15.9 points and 2.1 steals. For her part, GARDNER has averaged 11.9 points, 3.9 steals, and 1.9 blocks.
Rickards beat Columbia 55-47 in their previous matchup back in December of 2023. Will Rickards repeat their success, or does Columbia have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
