Basketball Game Preview: Harding Raiders vs. Austintown-Fitch Falcons

The Harding Raiders will head out on the road to take on the Austintown-Fitch Falcons at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Harding will be looking to extend their current four-game winning streak.

Last Friday, Harding beat Chaney 62-51. Given the Raiders' advantage in MaxPreps' Ohio basketball rankings (they are ranked 19th, while the Cowboys are ranked 148th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Meanwhile, Austintown-Fitch came up short against Green on Friday and fell 55-43.

Harding will have to contain Marcel Finkley as he made an impact in Austintown-Fitch's last game. He went 8-for-19 to rack up 21 points. The game was Finkley's fifth in a row with at least 18 points. Brady Evans was another key player, putting up five points and three steals.

Harding's victory was their sixth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 17-3. As for Austintown-Fitch, their loss dropped their record down to 9-12.

Everything came up roses for Harding against Austintown-Fitch in their previous matchup back in January, as the team secured a 67-39 win. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Austintown-Fitch's Carter Owens, who posted 21 points and seven rebounds. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Harding still be able to contain Owens? There's only one way to find out.