Basketball Game Preview: Lutheran South Academy Pioneers vs. St. John XXIII Lions

Lutheran South Academy and St. John XXIII are an even 4-4 against one another since January of 2015, but not for long. Having just played yesterday, the Lutheran South Academy Pioneers will head out on the road to face off against the St. John XXIII Lions at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. Lutheran South Academy will be strutting in after a win while St. John XXIII will be coming in after a loss.

If Lutheran South Academy beats St. John XXIII with 50 points on Friday, it's going to be the squad's new lucky number: they've won their past two contests with that exact score. Lutheran South Academy came out on top against Cooper by a score of 50-42 on Thursday. The score was all tied up 25-25 at the break, but the Pioneers were the better team in the second half.

Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Lutheran South Academy to victory, but perhaps none more so than Annaliese De La Pena, who posted 16 points and four steals. De La Pena is crushing it when it comes to steals: she's grabbed at least two every time she's taken the court this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Olivia Varanauski, who almost dropped a double-double on 11 points and nine boards.

Meanwhile, St. John XXIII was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap on Tuesday as they fell 47-43 to Brazos Christian. The Lions have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

Lutheran South Academy's victory ended a three-game drought on the road and puts them at 4-8. As for St. John XXIII, their defeat dropped their record down to 2-4.

Lutheran South Academy beat St. John XXIII 66-53 in their previous meeting back in February. Does Lutheran South Academy have another victory up their sleeve, or will St. John XXIII turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.