The Kimball Knights will be home for the holidays to greet the Corner Canyon Chargers at 2:00 p.m. on Friday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the pair posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Kimball has made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won three matchups by 22 points or more this season. They took their matchup on the road on Tuesday with ease, bagging a 83-52 victory over Hillcrest. The contest was pretty much decided by the half, when the score had already reached 42-19.
Kimball found their leader in underclassman Marri Wickware, who scored 26 points along with nine rebounds. The match was Wickware's third in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Lance Carr, who scored 13 points along with six rebounds and four blocks.
Meanwhile, Corner Canyon's five-game losing streak came to an end on Saturday. They came out on top against Pebblebrook by a score of 58-46. That looming 58-46 mark stands out as the most commanding margin for Corner Canyon yet this season.
Corner Canyon's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Noah Bendinger led the charge by scoring 18 points along with five rebounds. That's the first time this season that Bendinger scored 15 or more points. Another player making a difference was Bryton Valdes, who scored 13 points.
The victory got Kimball back to even at 5-5. As for Corner Canyon, their win bumped their record up to 2-6.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Kimball have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 23.9 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Corner Canyon, though, as they've been averaging only 27.4 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Kimball couldn't quite finish off Corner Canyon in their previous meeting back in December of 2021 and fell 84-81. Can Kimball avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
