Basketball Game Preview: Fairview Warriors vs. Columbia Raiders

The Fairview Warriors will venture away from home to challenge the Columbia Raiders at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Fairview will bounce into Saturday's contest after beating Lutheran West, who they had gone 1-8 against in their nine prior meetings. Fairview pulled ahead with a 44-43 photo finish over Lutheran West on Wednesday. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Warriors.

Meanwhile, Columbia had already won eight in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 19.8 points) and they went ahead and made it nine on Wednesday. They really took it to the The Phoenix for the full four quarters, racking up a 69-41 victory. The Raiders have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won seven matches by 25 points or more this season.

Columbia's win came from a few key players Fairview will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Natalie Miller, who dropped a double-double on 14 points and ten steals. She has been hot, having posted two or more steals the last eight times she's played. Another player making a difference was Kaitlyn Miller, who went 6 of 15 en route to 11 points along with seven assists and three steals.

Columbia smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in 13 consecutive games.

Fairview's win was their fifth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 13-7. The wins came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 28.2 points over those games. As for Columbia, their record now sits at 16-5.

Everything came up roses for Fairview against Columbia when the teams last played back in January of 2019, as the team secured a 51-14 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Fairview since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.