The Lamar Thunder will square off against the James Irwin Jaguars at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Lamar has six straight wins, James Irwin has six straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the court.
Lamar will head into Tuesday's contest hoping to keep the good times rolling: they proved they can win big on Friday (they won by 38) and on Tuesday they proved they can win the close ones too. They skirted past Crowley County 46-44. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Thunder have posted since December 16, 2023.
Lamar found their leader in sophomore Jacob Dunning, who went 6 for 15 on his way to 15 points and seven rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Cason Pollart, who posted eight points.
Meanwhile, James Irwin scored the most points they've had this season on Friday, but it wasn't enough. They took a blow against Manitou Springs, falling 80-50. While losing is never fun, the Jaguars can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Colorado basketball rankings (they are ranked 319th, while the Mustangs are ranked 135th).
Lamar will have to keep a close watch on Jace Remo and Jonathan Kimble, a pair of players who had a big impact on James Irwin's prior game. Remo went 6 of 11 en route to 17 points, while Kimble scored seven points and seven boards.
James Irwin's defeat dropped their record down to 1-7. As for Lamar, their win was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 10-2.
Lamar beat James Irwin 56-49 in their previous matchup back in February of 2024. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was James Irwin's Malik Willis, who dropped a double-double on 14 points and 13 rebounds. Now that he won't be playing on Thursday, will it be easier for Lamar to walk away with another win? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
