Basketball Game Preview: St. Labre Indian Catholic Braves vs. Billings Christian Warriors

The St. Labre Indian Catholic Braves will head out on the road to square off against the Billings Christian Warriors at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. St. Labre Indian Catholic knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past five contests -- so hopefully Billings Christian likes a good challenge.

St. Labre Indian Catholic is headed into the game having just suffered their biggest defeat since January 18, 2024 on Thursday. They lost 84-62 to Lodge Grass. The loss continues a trend for the Braves in their matchups with the Indians: they've now lost four in a row.

Meanwhile, you're bound to get a positive result if you outscore your opponent every quarter, and that's exactly how it played out for Billings Christian on Saturday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that they blew Heritage Christian out of the water with a 71-42 final score. The Warriors have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won four matches by 25 points or more this season.

St. Labre Indian Catholic better focus on containing Gabe Jones and Sawyer Middendorf as the pair were huge in Billings Christian's win. Jones went 13 for 27 on his way to 32 points, while Middendorf dropped a double-double on 13 points and 19 rebounds. Middendorf has been hot, having posted eight or more boards the last five times he's played. Blake Bentz was another key player, putting up eight points and five rebounds.

Billings Christian has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven contests, which provided a nice bump to their 9-4 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 62.3 points per game. As for St. Labre Indian Catholic, they now have a losing record at 2-3.

Everything went St. Labre Indian Catholic's way against Billings Christian in their previous meeting back in December of 2024, as St. Labre Indian Catholic made off with an 87-64 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for St. Labre Indian Catholic since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.