Two dominant forwards in Kimora Nears and Fatuma Abdi are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Patrick Henry Patriots will welcome the Crawford Colts at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
On Tuesday, Patrick Henry didn't have too much breathing room in their matchup against Point Loma, but they still walked away with a 27-21 victory. The win continues a trend for the Patriots in their matchups with the Pointers: they've now won four in a row.
Patrick Henry can attribute much of their success to Ayla Collins, who posted six points along with five boards and five steals. Ayvahlee Ruiz was another key player, putting up eight points.
Patrick Henry smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 11 offensive boards in five consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Crawford beat Madison 36-25 on Friday. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Colts.
Crawford's win came from a few key players Patrick Henry will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Abdi, who scored 12 points. Another player making a difference was Aisha Hassan, who earned nine points.
Patrick Henry pushed their record up to 18-6 with the victory, which was their fourth straight on the road. Those victories came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 26.3 points over those games. As for Crawford, the win got them back to even at 13-13.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Patrick Henry has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 29.9 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Crawford struggles in that department as they've been averaging 26.1 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Patrick Henry beat Crawford 32-19 when the teams last played back in January. Will Patrick Henry repeat their success, or does Crawford have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
