Basketball Game Preview: Clover Blue Eagles vs. Catawba Ridge Copperheads

The Clover Blue Eagles will challenge the Catawba Ridge Copperheads at 6:30 p.m. on Friday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Clover has 16 straight victories, Catawba Ridge has three straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the court.

Clover is headed into the match after thoroughly thrashing Nation Ford: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Clover blew Nation Ford out of the water with a 49-19 final score. The Blue Eagles have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 16 contests by 24 points or more this season.

Meanwhile, Catawba Ridge lost to Rock Hill at home by a 59-43 margin on Tuesday. While losing is never fun, the Copperheads can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' South Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 135th, while the Bearcats are ranked 31st).

Clover's win was their 12th straight at home, which pushed their record up to 22-2. Those victories came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 25.2 points over those games. As for Catawba Ridge, their loss dropped their record down to 8-15.

Everything came up roses for Clover against Catawba Ridge in their previous meeting back in January, as the squad secured a 63-23 victory. Will Clover repeat their success, or does Catawba Ridge have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.