Basketball Game Preview: Pinecrest Academy Paladins vs. Valor Christian Lions

Pinecrest Academy is on a three-game streak of home wins, while Valor Christian is on a eight-game streak of away wins (dating back to last season): one of those streaks is about to end. The Pinecrest Academy Paladins just played last yesterday, but they'll still welcome the Valor Christian Lions at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Pinecrest Academy has been getting the ball to fall more lately as they've increased their point totals each of their last three games.

Pinecrest Academy will head into Tuesday's contest hoping to keep the good times rolling: they proved they can win big two weeks ago (they won by 34) and on Tuesday they proved they can win the close ones too. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 49-46 victory over Harvester Christian Academy. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Paladins have posted since December 3, 2024.

Meanwhile, you can't lose the game if you win every quarter, and that was precisely Valor Christian's strategy against Lanier Christian Academy on Monday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Valor Christian blew Lanier Christian Academy out of the water with a 78-41 final score. The Lions have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 17 games by 22 points or more this season.

Valor Christian has also been performing incredibly well recently as they've won 15 of their last 16 matches, which provided a nice bump to their 21-2 record this season. As for Pinecrest Academy, their victory bumped their record up to 9-4.

Pinecrest Academy took a serious blow against Valor Christian in their previous matchup two weeks ago, falling 62-18. That contest was all but decided by halftime, at which point Pinecrest Academy was down 40-15.