Preview: Morgan Township Cherokees vs. Marquette Catholic Blazers
Morgan Township has enjoyed the comforts of home their last four games, but now they'll head out on the road. They and the Marquette Catholic Blazers will face off at 7:00 p.m. on February 10th without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. Both teams come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
With a playoff game on the line, Morgan Township rose to the challenge on Saturday. They snuck past the Mustangs & Fillies with a 28-24 victory. Given Morgan Township's advantage in MaxPreps' Indiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 124th, while Kouts is ranked 321st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Morgan Township's success was spearheaded by the efforts of Peyton Honchar, who scored eight points along with 11 rebounds, and Madi Lemmons, who dropped a double-double on ten points and 12 rebounds. Lemmons is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last seven games she's played.
Meanwhile, Marquette Catholic waltzed into their match on Saturday with two straight wins but they left with three. They walked away with a 52-39 victory over Triton.
It was another big night for Laniah Davis, who almost dropped a double-double on 30 points and nine rebounds. She is on a roll when it comes to points, as she's now scored 18 or more in the last three games she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Natalie Robinson, who scored five points along with eight steals and six rebounds.
Morgan Township pushed their record up to 17-7 with that victory, which was their fourth straight at home. As for Marquette Catholic, their victory bumped their record up to 21-4.
Saturday's contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Morgan Township have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 29.2 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Marquette Catholic struggles in that department as they've been averaging 30.8 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Morgan Township was able to grind out a solid victory over Marquette Catholic in their previous matchup back in November of 2022, winning 33-25. The rematch might be a little tougher for Morgan Township since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
