Preview: Rockwell Marshals vs. American Prep WV Eagles
Rockwell and American Prep WV are an even 5-5 against one another since February of 2017, but not for long. The Rockwell Marshals will head out on the road to square off against the American Prep WV Eagles at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both teams are coming into the game red-hot, with Rockwell sitting on nine straight wins and American Prep WV on four.
Rockwell put the finishing touches on their sixth blowout victory of the season on Tuesday. They breezed by Freedom Prep Academy at home to the tune of 74-40. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest victory Rockwell has posted since December 9, 2023.
It was another big night for Luke Henderson, who dropped a double-double on 28 points and 16 rebounds. He has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last 14 times he's played. Ethan Kearl was another key contributor, scoring 15 points along with three steals.
Even though American Prep WV has not done well against Rowland Hall recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), they didn't let the past get in their way on Tuesday. American Prep WV came out on top against Rowland Hall by a score of 73-64. Having run the score up that high, both teams probably have some extra defensive drills coming up.
Komy Ocwor was his usual excellent self, dropping a double-double on 29 points and ten rebounds. He hasn't dropped below two steals for four straight games. The team also got some help courtesy of Peter Hakim, who dropped a double-double on 14 points and 15 rebounds.
Rockwell pushed their record up to 12-4 with that victory, which was their seventh straight at home. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 74.4 points per game. As for American Prep WV, their victory ended a three-game drought on the road and puts them at 10-5.
Thursday's contest will pit two of the most dominant players against one another: Henderson and Ocwor. Henderson has been dynamite this season: he has averaged 21.1 points, 3.3 steals, and 9.8 rebounds. For his part, Ocwor has averaged 22 points, 2.5 steals, and 7.8 rebounds.
Rockwell took a serious blow against American Prep WV in their previous meeting back in December of 2022, falling 81-47. Thankfully for Rockwell, Adis Halaba (who scored 11 points along with eight rebounds) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
