Basketball Game Preview: Harding Academy Lions vs. Evangelical Christian Eagles

Harding Academy is 9-1 against Evangelical Christian since January of 2017 and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The Harding Academy Lions will face off against the Evangelical Christian Eagles at 6:00 p.m. Harding Academy is coming into the contest hot, having won their last three games.

Last Tuesday, Harding Academy took their match with ease, bagging a 57-28 win over St. George's. Given the Lions' advantage in MaxPreps' Tennessee basketball rankings (they are ranked 142nd, while the Gryphons are ranked 372nd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Harding Academy got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Erica McGary out in front who dropped a double-double on 23 points and 11 boards. McGary has been hot, having posted eight or more rebounds the last six times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Brynne Miller, who almost dropped a double-double on 11 points and nine boards.

Harding Academy smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in 13 consecutive games.

Meanwhile, Evangelical Christian was able to grind out a solid win over Lausanne Collegiate on Tuesday, taking the game 34-26. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Eagles.

Evangelical Christian's record now sits at 18-4. As for Harding Academy, they are on a roll lately: they've won 12 of their last 13 contests, which provided a nice bump to their 17-5 record this season.

Harding Academy strolled past Evangelical Christian when the teams last played back in January by a score of 46-28. The rematch might be a little tougher for Harding 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.