Basketball Game Preview: East Hardy Cougars vs. Robert C. Byrd Eagles

The East Hardy Cougars and the Robert C. Byrd Eagles will round out the year against one another at at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Robert C. Byrd took a loss in their last contest and will be looking to turn the tables on East Hardy, who comes in off a win.

East Hardy is headed into the game after thoroughly thrashing Harman: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that East Hardy blew Harman out of the water with a 68-15 final score. The matchup was all but wrapped up at the end of the third, by which point the Cougars had established a 41 point advantage.

Xavia Barber had a dynamite game for East Hardy, almost dropping a double-double on 20 points and nine rebounds. The dominant performance also gave Barber a new career-high in assists (seven). Another player making a difference was Brooklynn Tinnell, who went 6 of 14 en route to 15 points and four steals.

East Hardy smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 12 offensive rebounds in four consecutive contests.

Meanwhile, Robert C. Byrd was not able to break out of their rough patch on Monday as the team picked up their seventh straight defeat dating back to last season. They were beaten by Gilmer County 75-17. The game marked the Eagles' lowest-scoring matchup so far this season.

The victory got East Hardy back to even at 2-2. As for Robert C. Byrd, their loss dropped their record down to 0-5.

Things could have been worse for East Hardy, but things could have been a whole lot better as they took a 53-34 loss to Robert C. Byrd in their previous meeting back in December of 2023. Can East Hardy avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.