Basketball Game Preview: Elkhart Lions vs. Mishawaka Marian Knights

Elkhart hasn't had much luck against Mishawaka Marian recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. The Elkhart Lions will look to defend their home court against the Mishawaka Marian Knights at 7:30 p.m.

Last Friday, Elkhart came up short against Penn and fell 54-41. While losing is never fun, the Lions can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Indiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 264th, while the Kingsmen are ranked 96th).

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Mishawaka Marian). They simply couldn't be stopped on Friday as they easily beat New Prairie 76-35. The Knights have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won five matchups by 22 points or more this season.

Mishawaka Marian had a senior duo take command as Paxan Sullivan went 7 for 12 on his way to 19 points in addition to seven steals and six assists and William Owens went 8 for 12 on his way to 18 points and four steals. With that strong performance, Owens is now averaging an impressive 15.1 points per game. The team also got some help courtesy of Prescott Horvath, who went 5 of 8 on his way to 10 points and seven rebounds.

The victory made it two in a row for Mishawaka Marian and bumps their season record up to 8-5. As for Elkhart, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 2-8.

Things could have been worse for Elkhart, but things could have been a whole lot better as they took a 57-40 loss to Mishawaka Marian when the teams last played back in February of 2024. Thankfully for Elkhart, Zion Rhoades (who almost dropped a double-double on 20 points and nine rebounds) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.