Basketball Game Preview: Link Academy Lions vs. IMG Academy Ascenders

The Link Academy Lions will challenge the IMG Academy Ascenders on Saturday. Link Academy knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past seven matchups -- so hopefully IMG Academy likes a good challenge.

Link Academy is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another highly-ranked state team: Wasatch Academy, who was ranked fifth in their home state at the time (Link Academy was ranked ninth). Link Academy lost to Wasatch Academy on the road by a 70-55 margin on Friday.

Meanwhile, IMG Academy had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 31.5 points) and they went ahead and made it three on Thursday. They snuck past the Eaglets with a 67-62 victory.

IMG Academy has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won nine of their last ten games, which provided a nice bump to their 12-2 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 76.9 points per game. As for Link Academy, their defeat was their first in the district, dropping their district record down to 3-1 and their overall record down to 9-4.

Link Academy strolled past IMG Academy in their previous matchup back in January of 2024 by a score of 65-49. Does Link Academy have another victory up their sleeve, or will IMG Academy turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.