The East Rutherford Cavaliers and the Concord Academy Eagles will round out the year against one another at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday at. East Rutherford will be coming into the contest with an undefeated record on the line.
Last Tuesday, East Rutherford strolled past Bessemer City with points to spare, taking the game 65-47. Given East Rutherford's advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 126th, while Bessemer City is ranked 517th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
East Rutherford relied on the efforts of Taniyah Cash, who scored 20 points along with seven rebounds, and Jada Whitesides, who scored 21 points along with six assists and five rebounds. That makes it four consecutive games in which Cash has scored at least 25% of East Rutherford's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Zilah Dewberry, who scored nine points.
Meanwhile, Concord Academy unfortunately witnessed the end of their 24-game winning streak dating back to last season on Friday. They took a 37-29 hit to the loss column at the hands of Quality Education Academy. Concord Academy has not had much luck with Quality Education Academy recently, as the team's come up short the last three times they've met.
Despite the loss, Concord Academy had strong showings from Samantha Meyers, who scored ten points along with six rebounds, and Justice Alexander, who scored ten points along with seven rebounds and three steals. Alexander also posted two blocks for the first time this season.
Concord Academy struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only two offensive rebounds. That's the fewest offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
East Rutherford's win was their 19th straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 8-0. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 69.3 points per game. As for Concord Academy, their defeat dropped their record down to 7-1.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: East Rutherford have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 27.5 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Concord Academy struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 29.1 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out. Come back here after the game to get analysis of the match and other basketball content.
