After having lost a blowout in their previous game against Pueblo West, the Air Academy Kadets were happy to have found some success on Tuesday. They narrowly escaped with a victory as the team sidled past Palmer Ridge 53-51. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory Air Academy has posted yet this season.
Leading Air Academy to victory were Max Howery and Noah Hellem. Howery scored 14 points along with six steals and five assists, while Hellem scored 26 points along with three steals. That makes it four consecutive games in which Hellem has scored at least a third of Air Academy's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Tommy Tygart, who scored three points.
When it comes to explaining why Palmer Ridge lost, one person who can't be blamed is Logan Boyer. Despite the final result, he scored 12 points. Another player making a difference was Jimmer Weir, who scored eight points.
Air Academy has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four games, which provided a nice bump to their 6-11 record this season. As for Palmer Ridge, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 7-8.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Air Academy will take on Lutheran at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. One thing working in Lutheran's favor is that they have posted big point totals in their last seven matches. As for Palmer Ridge, they will head out on the road to take on Cheyenne Mountain at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. Cheyenne Mountain has now lost nine straight, and the team is hunting for their first win since December 12.
