Preview: Sumner Stingrays vs. King Lions
Two dominant players in Jacob Douglas and Julien Barnett are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Sumner Stingrays and the King Lions will face off at 8:00 p.m. on January 19th without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. Sumner knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with flashy point totals in its past 11 matches -- so hopefully King likes a good challenge.
Sumner can now show off seven landslide victories after their most recent matchup on Wednesday. They claimed a resounding 83-23 win over Brandon on the road. That 60 points margin sets a new team best for Sumner this season.
Kyree Williams was the offensive standout of the game as he scored 13 points along with seven assists and seven steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points he has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of Karsten Walker, who scored ten points.
King posted their biggest win since December 15, 2023 on Wednesday. They took their game at home with ease, bagging a 73-34 win over Chamberlain. The victory was just what King needed coming off of a 75-50 defeat in their prior matchup.
King's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Andreas Jackson, who dropped a triple-double on 14 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 blocks. Jackson also grabbed two+ steals for the first time this season. Barnett was another key contributor, scoring 22 points along with two blocks.
Sumner pushed their record up to 13-5 with that win, which was their fourth straight on the road. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 69.8 points per game. As for King, they now have a winning record of 10-9.
Friday's match is shaping up to be a masterclass in shooting: Sumner have been dynamite from deep this season, having drained 44.1% of their threes per game. However, it's not like King struggles in that department as they've drained 43.3% of their threes per game this season. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Sumner was able to grind out a solid win over King in their previous matchup back in February of 2023, winning 59-46. Will Sumner repeat their success, or does King have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
