The Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory Braves came tearing into Friday's match with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 33.8 points) and they left with even more momentum. They walked away with a 70-58 victory over Evansville Memorial. Given Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory's advantage in MaxPreps' Indiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 12th, while Evansville Memorial is ranked 126th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Evan Haywood continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, dropping a double-double on 23 points and 12 rebounds. The contest was his eighth in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Javawn Brooks, who scored ten points along with six rebounds.
Despite the defeat, Evansville Memorial had strong showings from Tucker Tornatta, who dropped a double-double on 23 points and 17 rebounds, and Luke Ellspermann, who scored 16 points along with seven rebounds and six assists. Tornatta scored a full 39.7% of Evansville Memorial's points, the fourth time in a row he's earned more than a third of the team's points.
Even though they lost, Evansville Memorial were smashing the offensive glass and finished the game with 12 offensive rebounds. That's the most offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory's victory was their fifth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 7-1. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 72.0 points per game. As for Evansville Memorial, they have not been sharp recently, as they've lost four of their last five contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 3-4 record this season.
Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory won't have much time to rest: their next matchup is against Warren Central at 7:30 p.m. on December 30, 2023. One thing working in Warren Central's favor is that they have posted big point totals in their last six matches. Evansville Memorial won't have much time to rest: their next game is against Owensboro at 4:30 p.m. on December 30, 2023. Owensboro knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with flashy point totals in its past five games -- so hopefully Evansville Memorial likes a good challenge.
