Basketball Game Preview: Cardinal Gibbons Crusaders vs. Ashley Screaming Eagle

The Cardinal Gibbons Crusaders will wrap up 2024 with a road trip to face off against the Ashley Screaming Eagle at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. The two teams have had a bumpy ride up to this point with three consecutive losses for Cardinal Gibbons and four for Ashley.

Cardinal Gibbons is headed into the contest out to prove that what happened against Southeast Raleigh on Saturday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Cardinal Gibbons was dealt a 73-22 loss at the hands of Southeast Raleigh. While losing is never fun, the Crusaders can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 319th, while the Bulldogs are ranked 25th).

Meanwhile, Ashley ended up a good deal behind Laney last Friday and lost 46-27. The game marked the Screaming Eagle's lowest-scoring matchup so far this season.

Cardinal Gibbons will have to contain Reagan Norris as she made an impact in Ashley's last game. She went 5 of 11 on her way to 14 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Palyn Everhart, who posted three points in addition to five rebounds and five steals.

Even though they lost, Ashley smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive boards. That's the most offensive boards they've posted since back in February.

Ashley's defeat dropped their record down to 3-6. As for Cardinal Gibbons, their loss dropped their record down to an identical 3-6.

Cardinal Gibbons and Ashley were neck-and-neck when the teams last played back in December of 2023, but Cardinal Gibbons came up empty-handed after a 30-29 defeat. Can Cardinal Gibbons avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.