Mansfield Christian is 0-10 against the Cubs since January of 2020 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. Both teams will face off at 7:30 p.m. on February 9th without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Mansfield Christian came tearing into Saturday's matchup with eight straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 30.3 points) and they left with even more momentum. They put the hurt on Monroeville with a sharp 72-48 win. Mansfield Christian pushed the score to 58-31 by the end of the third, a deficit the Eagles cut but never quite recovered from.
Mansfield Christian's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Davion Mack, who almost dropped a double-double on 17 points and nine rebounds. Mack is on a roll when it comes to points, as he's now scored 15 or more in the last eight games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Davis Wushinske, who scored 17 points along with three steals.
Meanwhile, Lucas had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 41 points), and they went ahead and made it four on Saturday. They were the clear victor by a 56-32 margin over Central Christian.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Lucas to victory, but perhaps none more so than Gabe Porter, who scored 11 points along with five rebounds and two steals. Aidan Culler was another key contributor, scoring 17 points along with six rebounds.
Mansfield Christian pushed their record up to 15-3 with that win, which was their fourth straight on the road. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 75.0 points per game. As for Lucas, their victory bumped their record up to 13-3.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Mansfield Christian have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 33.1 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Lucas struggles in that department as they've been averaging 28.9 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Mansfield Christian couldn't quite finish off the Cubs in their previous matchup back in January and fell 64-62. Can Mansfield Christian avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
