Basketball Game Preview: Sanderson Spartans vs. Riverside-Durham Pirates + Official Tickets

Sanderson hasn't had much luck against Riverside-Durham recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. The Spartans will challenge the Pirates at 7:30 p.m. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Sanderson took a loss when they played away from home last Monday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Tuesday. They snuck past Green Hope with a 49-45 win.

Meanwhile, Riverside-Durham put another one in the bag on Tuesday to keep their perfect season alive. They walked away with a 58-49 victory over Person. Surprisingly, this marked the Pirates' fifth straight game in which the away team has come away the victor.

Sanderson better keep an eye on Darryn Johnson. He was instrumental in Riverside-Durham's win, going 9-for-12 to rack up 22 points along with five assists and four steals. The dominant performance also gave Johnson a new career-high in field goal percentage (75%). Another player making a difference was Robert Mcdonald, who shot 64% from the field en route to 14 points and four steals.

Riverside-Durham was working as a unit and finished the game with ten assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.

Sanderson's record is now 3-1. As for Riverside-Durham, their record now sits at 4-0.

Sanderson suffered a grim 56-32 defeat to Riverside-Durham when the teams last played back in November of 2017. Can the Spartans avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.