Basketball Game Preview: Columbus Cardinals vs. Lake Country Lutheran Lightning

The Columbus Cardinals will challenge the Lake Country Lutheran Lightning at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Columbus knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past four matchups -- so hopefully Lake Country Lutheran likes a good challenge.

The home team had won the previous three meetings between Columbus and Mayville, and Columbus kept the tradition alive. Columbus beat Mayville on Tuesday by the very same score they won with in their prior game: 65-51. The win continues a trend for Columbus in their matchups with Mayville: they've now won four in a row.

Meanwhile, after a string of 14 wins, Lake Country Lutheran's good fortune finally ran out on Thursday. They took a 53-45 hit to the loss column at the hands of Martin Luther. The game marked the Lightning's lowest-scoring contest so far this season.

Columbus will need to focus on slowing down Jacob Burow, one of several Lake Country Lutheran players who made an impact when they last played. He posted nine points in addition to five boards and three steals. Burow has been hot for a while, having posted two or more steals the last 14 times he's played. Daniel Cleary was another key player, putting up six points and seven rebounds.

Columbus' victory bumped their record up to 10-14. As for Lake Country Lutheran, their loss dropped their record down to 21-3.

Columbus was dealt a bruising 86-56 defeat at the hands of Lake Country Lutheran in their previous matchup back in February. Can Columbus avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.