Basketball Game Preview: Sacred Heart Academy Sharks vs. North Tonawanda Lumberjacks

The Sacred Heart Academy Sharks will face off against the North Tonawanda Lumberjacks at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.

Having struggled with three losses in a row, Sacred Heart Academy turned things around against Hamburg on Saturday. They were the clear victor by a 57-32 margin over the Bulldogs. The Sharks pushed the score to 46-24 by the end of the third, a deficit the Bulldogs had little chance of recovering from.

Sacred Heart Academy can attribute much of their success to Makenna Chamberlain, who went 5 of 9 on her way to 19 points and seven rebounds, and Emilee Bacon, who dropped a double-double on 16 points and 11 rebounds. Those 19 points gave Chamberlain a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Olivia Mistretta, who posted four points and five assists.

Sacred Heart Academy was working as a unit and finished the game with 18 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.

Meanwhile, North Tonawanda entered their tilt with Grand Island on Friday with two consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with three. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat the Vikings 93-21. With the Lumberjacks ahead 55-10 at the half, the matchup was all but over already.

Sacred Heart Academy better focus on containing Annabelle Day and Lilly Day as the pair were huge in North Tonawanda's win. Annabelle dropped a double-double on 22 points and 12 assists, while Lilly dropped a double-double on 22 points and ten boards. The contest was Lilly's seventh in a row with at least ten points. Maddie Caron was another key player, going 8 of 14 on her way to 17 points and four steals.

North Tonawanda pushed their record up to 8-1 with the win, which was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season. As for Sacred Heart Academy, their victory bumped their record up to 6-4.

Everything came up roses for Sacred Heart Academy against North Tonawanda in their previous meeting back in February of 2023, as the squad secured a 71-37 win. In that game, Sacred Heart Academy amassed a halftime lead of 45-18, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Tuesday.