Preview: Liberty Common Eagles vs. Highland Huskies
Liberty Common is 0-8 against Highland since January of 2015 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Liberty Common Eagles on the road again and play against the Highland Huskies at 7:00 p.m. on January 19th. Both teams took a loss in their last game, so they'll have plenty of motivation to get the 'W'.
Liberty Common suffered their biggest defeat yet this season on Thursday. They were outmatched by Prospect Ridge Academy on the road and fell 78-44. While losing is never fun, Liberty Common can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Colorado basketball rankings (they are ranked 237th, while Prospect Ridge Academy is ranked 115th).
Despite the defeat, Liberty Common got a solid performance out of Max Frevert, who scored 11 points along with six rebounds. Another player making a difference was Pierce Richardson, who scored 12 points.
Liberty Common struggled to work together and finished the game with only two assists. That's the fewest assists they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Highland pushed their score all the way to 66 last Tuesday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They received a tough blow as they fell 83-66 to Strasburg. Highland has now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Despite the defeat, Highland got a solid performance out of Sawyer Morgan, who dropped a double-double on 15 points and ten rebounds. Morgan has been hot recently, having posted eight or more rebounds the last six times he's played. Jacob Wares was another key contributor, scoring 16 points along with three steals.
Liberty Common bumped their record down to 2-8 with that loss, which was their eighth straight on the road dating back to last season. As for Highland, their defeat dropped their record down to 5-4.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Liberty Common have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 23.5 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Highland struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 36.1 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Liberty Common might still be hurting after the 75-54 defeat they got from Highland when the teams last played back in January of 2023. Thankfully for Liberty Common, Hayden Rohn (who scored 15 points along with six rebounds) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
