Two dominant players in Karon Hickman and Darien Moore are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Lincoln Lancers and the Catholic Central Crusaders will round out the year against one another at 2:00 p.m. on Friday at. Lincoln is hoping to put an end to a nine-game streak of away losses dating back to last season.
It's never fun to lose, and it's even less fun to lose 80-53, which was the final score in Lincoln's tilt against Westlake last Saturday. While losing is never fun, Lincoln can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' New York basketball rankings (they are ranked 576th, while Westlake is ranked 245th).
Despite their loss, Lincoln saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Hickman , who dropped a double-double on 23 points and 11 rebounds, was perhaps the best of all. Those 23 points set a new season-high mark for him. The team also got some help courtesy of Jailos Chilomba, who scored 15 points along with five rebounds and three blocks.
Meanwhile, Catholic Central entered their tilt with La Salle Institute with four consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with five. Catholic Central was the clear victor by a 73-52 margin over La Salle Institute. Catholic Central might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team's won five matches by 20 points or more this season.
Moore continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, scoring 30 points along with six assists and six steals. The game was his sixth in a row with at least ten points. Xavjon Arroyo was another key contributor, scoring 14 points along with five steals.
Lincoln's defeat dropped their record down to 1-4. As for Catholic Central, their victory bumped their record up to 5-1.
Friday's contest is shaping up to be a scrappy contest: Lincoln have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 14 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Catholic Central, though, as they've been averaging only 37.3 rebounds per game. Given Lincoln's sizeable advantage in that area, Catholic Central will need to find a way to close that gap. Come back here after the game to get analysis of the match and other basketball content.
