Gray Stone Day is 0-10 against the Cardinals since February of 2016 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Tuesday. The Gray Stone Day Knights will head out on the road to take on the Union Academy Cardinals at 7:30 p.m. Gray Stone Day is no doubt hoping to put an end to a 20-game streak of away losses dating back to last season.
It's never fun to lose, and it's even less fun to lose 63-34, which was the final score in Gray Stone Day's tilt against the Comets on Friday. While losing is never fun, Gray Stone Day can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 666th, while the Comets are ranked 317th).
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Drew Bitzer, who scored six points along with four steals. Another player making a difference was Evan Barber, who scored eight points along with two steals.
Meanwhile, Union Academy's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Tuesday after their fourth straight loss. They fell just short of North Stanly by a score of 63-61. Having run the score up that high, both teams probably have some extra defensive drills coming up.
Like Gray Stone Day, Union Academy lost despite seeing results from several players. Aidan Scruitsky led the charge by scoring 20 points along with six rebounds and three steals. Scruitsky hasn't dropped below two steals for four straight games. Miles Mcginnis was another key contributor, scoring 13 points along with four steals.
Even though they lost, Union Academy were working as a unit and finished the game with 16 assists. This was only their 12th loss (out of 15 games) when they've passed the ball that well.
Gray Stone Day's record is now 1-15. As for Union Academy, they have not been sharp recently as the team's lost seven of their last eight games, which put a noticeable dent in their 3-15 record this season.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Gray Stone Day have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 24.1 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Union Academy struggles in that department as they've been averaging 30.9 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Gray Stone Day was dealt a bruising 80-38 loss at the hands of the Cardinals when the teams last played back in January of 2023. Can Gray Stone Day avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
