Preview: Bunker Hill Bears vs. East Burke Cavaliers
Bunker Hill is 2-8 against East Burke since January of 2020 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Bunker Hill Bears will head out on the road to challenge the East Burke Cavaliers at 6:30 p.m. Bunker Hill will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps North Carolina Rankings (they are ranked 489th, while East Burke is ranked 46th).
Bunker Hill unfortunately witnessed the end of their three-game winning streak on Tuesday. They were beaten by Maiden 74-41. Bunker Hill has not had much luck with Maiden recently, as the team's come up short the last five times they've met.
Despite the defeat, Bunker Hill had strong showings from Damireona Burch, who dropped a double-double on 13 points and ten rebounds, and Eliana McClain, who scored six points along with three steals. Burch hasn't dropped below ten rebounds for four straight games.
Meanwhile, East Burke put the finishing touches on their 17th blowout victory of the season on Tuesday. They really took it to Lincolnton for the full four quarters, racking up a 77-20 victory on the road. East Burke's win was nothing new given the team hasn't lost yet this season.
Braelyn Stilwell was her usual excellent self, scoring 28 points along with six assists and six steals. Stilwell is crushing the steal category: she's posted at least three every time she's taken the court this season. Another player making a difference was Kara Brinkley, who scored 20 points along with eight rebounds.
Bunker Hill's loss dropped their record down to 6-15. As for East Burke, they pushed their record up to 20-0 with that win, which was their 23rd straight on the road dating back to last season.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Bunker Hill have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 30.7 rebounds per game. However, it's not like East Burke struggles in that department as they've been averaging 30.8 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Bunker Hill was dealt a bruising 81-20 defeat at the hands of East Burke in their previous meeting back in January. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Stilwell, who scored 27 points along with eight steals and five assists. Now that Bunker Hill knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
