Preview: Hammond Golden Bears vs. Long Reach Lightning
The Hammond Golden Bears will be staying on the road on Friday to face off against the Long Reach Lightning at 6:00 p.m. on January 19th. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Last Friday, Hammond came up short against Centennial and fell 70-60. Hammond has struggled against Centennial recently, as their game on Friday was their fifth consecutive lost matchup.
Meanwhile, Long Reach waltzed into their game on Friday with eight straight wins but they left with nine. They came out on top against Marriotts Ridge by a score of 77-64. Given Long Reach's advantage in MaxPreps' Maryland basketball rankings (they are ranked 35th, while Marriotts Ridge is ranked 152nd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Long Reach had a senior duo take command as RJ Barnes scored 25 points along with three steals and Jayden Saunders scored 20 points along with eight rebounds and five assists. Saunders hasn't dropped below two steals for six straight games. The team also got some help courtesy of Dillon Mckinney, who scored ten points along with six rebounds.
Hammond has been struggling recently, as they've lost four of their last five contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 4-7 record this season. As for Long Reach, they pushed their record up to 12-1 with that victory, which was their fourth straight at home.
Hammond was dealt a bruising 79-41 defeat at the hands of Long Reach in their previous meeting back in December of 2022. Can Hammond avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
