Preview: Greenwood Mennonite Flames vs. Concord Christian Academy Minutemen
Greenwood Mennonite has enjoyed the comforts of home their last two games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will square off against the Concord Christian Academy Minutemen at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday. Hopefully Greenwood Mennonite focused on turnovers this week since the team gave up 18 on Saturday.
Last Saturday, Greenwood Mennonite suffered a tough 51-30 defeat at the hands of Varsity Opponent. Greenwood Mennonite was in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 31-6.
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Carter Long, who scored 11 points along with eight rebounds and three steals. That was a full 36.7% of Greenwood Mennonite's points, marking the seventh time in a row he's earned more than a third of the team's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Jay Yoder, who scored six points.
Greenwood Mennonite struggled to work together and finished the game with only four assists. That's the fewest assists they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Concord Christian Academy didn't have too much breathing room in their match against Chestertown Christian Academy last Monday, but they still walked away with a 38-34 victory. The win made it back-to-back wins for Concord Christian Academy.
Concord Christian Academy got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Carlin Hollis - Homeschool out in front who scored 16 points along with six rebounds and two steals. Hollis - Homeschool is absolutely dominating the point category: he's posted at least 15 every time he's taken the court this season. Gabriel Franco was another key contributor, scoring ten points.
Greenwood Mennonite's defeat ended a four-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 5-3. As for Concord Christian Academy, they now have a winning record of 2-1.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Greenwood Mennonite have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 35.5 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Concord Christian Academy, though, as they've been averaging only 33 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Everything came up roses for Greenwood Mennonite against Concord Christian Academy in their previous matchup back in February of 2023 as the team secured a 76-44 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Greenwood Mennonite since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
