Valiant Cross Academy has gone 3-0 against Evangel Christian recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Thursday. The Valiant Cross Academy Warriors will venture away from home to face off against the Evangel Christian Lightning at 7:00 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Evangel Christian is hoping to do what Banks Academy couldn't on Tuesday: put an end to Valiant Cross Academy's winning streak, which now stands at ten games. Valiant Cross Academy took their matchup with ease, bagging a 62-31 win over Banks Academy. The 62-point effort marked the Warriors' lowest-scoring contest of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.
| 12/17/24 @ Banks Academy | 12 |
| 12/16/24 vs Wiregrass | 15 |
| 12/12/24 vs Trinity Christian | 10 |
| 12/09/24 vs Varsity Opponent | 12 |
| 12/05/24 vs Evangel Christian | 13 |
Valiant Cross Academy relied on the efforts of James Cosby, who dropped a double-double on 18 points and 15 boards, and Deshawn Hall, who dropped a double-double on 16 points and 12 rebounds. Hall has been hot for a while, having posted eight or more boards the last 35 times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Jersey Farbes, who posted 11 points along with five assists and three steals.
Valiant Cross Academy smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 28 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 16 offensive boards in 38 consecutive games dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, Evangel Christian had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 28.3 points) and they went ahead and made it four on Tuesday. They breezed by the Falcons to the tune of 60-19. The match was pretty much decided by the half, when the score had already reached 31-11.
Valiant Cross Academy better keep an eye on Ben Bugnar. He was instrumental in Evangel Christian's win, putting up nine points in addition to six boards and three blocks. The team also got some help courtesy of Asa Wagoner, who went 5 of 11 on his way to 13 points and five rebounds.
Valiant Cross Academy pushed their record up to 10-0 with the victory, which was their ninth straight on the road dating back to last season. As for Evangel Christian, their win bumped their record up to 7-1.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Valiant Cross Academy has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 58.3 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Evangel Christian struggles in that department as they've been averaging 34.2 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Valiant Cross Academy strolled past Evangel Christian in their previous meeting two weeks ago by a score of 71-56. The rematch might be a little tougher for Valiant Cross Academy since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
