The College Prep Cougars will head out on the road to square off against the Athenian Owls at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
College Prep came tearing into Wednesday's match with six straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 36.3 points) and they left with even more momentum. They blew past Bentley 72-44 at home. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest win College Prep has posted yet this season.
Meanwhile, Athenian really took it to Redwood Christian for the full four quarters, racking up a 57-24 win on the road. Given Athenian's advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 286th, while Redwood Christian is ranked 1046th), the result on Wednesday wasn't entirely unexpected.
Athenian's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Evan Lucas led the charge by scoring 16 points. Lucas is on a roll when it comes to points, as he's now scored 15 or more in the last seven games he's played. Another player making a difference was Surya Devasenapathy, who scored 13 points.
College Prep pushed their record up to 9-5 with that win, which was their sixth straight at home. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 67.2 points per game. As for Athenian, they are on a roll lately: they've won ten of their last 12 games, which provided a nice bump to their 14-4 record this season.
College Prep ended up a good deal behind Athenian in their previous matchup back in February of 2023, losing 64-45. Can College Prep avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
