Preview: East Central HomeSchool Patriots vs. Ezekiel Academy Knights
East Central HomeSchool has been on the road for five straight, but on Thursday they'll finally head home. They will take on the Ezekiel Academy Knights at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. The matchup should be an exciting one, as these teams are ranked near one another in Alabama (East Central HomeSchool is ranked 88th, while Ezekiel Academy is ranked 101st).
East Central HomeSchool stacked a seventh blowout win onto their ever-increasing hoard on Friday. They blew past Tuscaloosa Home Educators 65-33 on the road. With East Central HomeSchool ahead 39-16 at the half, the matchup was all but over already.
East Central HomeSchool relied on the efforts of Hannah Bankston, who scored 19 points along with seven rebounds, and Micah Coalson, who scored 27 points along with seven assists and two steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Bankston has scored all season. Another player making a difference was Emma Nelson, who scored eight points along with five steals.
Meanwhile, Ezekiel Academy was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap on Thursday as they fell 49-45 to Abbeville Christian Academy.
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the most dominant came from Addi Newell, who scored 18 points along with two steals. She continues to roll, besting her previous point total in each of the last three games she's played. Gianna Johnson was another key contributor, scoring 11 points along with eight rebounds and two steals.
East Central HomeSchool has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven matches, which provided a nice bump to their 8-2 record this season. As for Ezekiel Academy, their defeat ended a five-game streak of away wins and brought them to 14-4.
Thursday's match is shaping up to be a scrappy game: East Central HomeSchool have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 39.1 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Ezekiel Academy, though, as they've been averaging only 29.3 rebounds per game. Given East Central HomeSchool's sizeable advantage in that area, Ezekiel Academy will need to find a way to close that gap.
East Central HomeSchool couldn't quite finish off Ezekiel Academy in their previous meeting two weeks ago and fell 41-38. Will East Central HomeSchool have more luck at home instead of on the road? Come back here after the game to get analysis of the match and other basketball content.
