Preview: Guilderland Flying Dutchmen vs. Troy Flying Horses
Guilderland has enjoyed a three-game homestand but will soon have to dust off their road jerseys. They will face off against the Troy Flying Horses at 7:00 p.m. on Monday. Given that the two teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this matchup.
Last Tuesday, Guilderland lost to Schenectady at home by a decisive 67-52 margin. While losing is never fun, Guilderland can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' New York basketball rankings (they are ranked 588th, while Schenectady is ranked 140th).
Meanwhile, Troy's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Tuesday after their sixth straight loss. They fell 61-51 to Colonie Central.
Despite the loss, Troy saw an underclassman step up: Stetson Merritt scored 24 points. That was a full 47.1% of Troy's points, marking the fifth time in a row he's earned more than a third of the team's points. Legend Merritt was another key contributor, scoring ten points.
Guilderland dropped their record down to 1-17 with that loss, which was their fourth straight at home. As for Troy, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost ten of their last 11 contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 3-16 record this season.
Guilderland strolled past Troy when the teams last played back in January by a score of 56-42. The rematch might be a little tougher for Guilderland since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
