The Warren Central Warriors will face off against the Mt. Vernon Marauders at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Both are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Warren Central picked up another tournament win last Friday. They put the hurt on Linton-Stockton with a sharp 55-31 win. The Warriors have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won nine games by 22 points or more this season.
Denell Jacobs
| 01/03/25 vs Linton-Stockton | 4 |
| 01/03/25 vs Jeffersonville | 4 |
| 12/20/24 vs Lawrence North | 2 |
| 12/18/24 @ Indianapolis Crispus Attucks | 3 |
| 12/16/24 vs Anderson | 3 |
It was another big night for Denell Jacobs, who went 11 for 14 on her way to 30 points and four steals. Jacobs is crushing it when it comes to steals: she's grabbed at least two every time she's taken the court this season. La'Starr Williams was another key player, putting up ten points.
Meanwhile, Mt. Vernon had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 29 points) and they went ahead and made it three on Wednesday. They breezed by the Hawks to the tune of 66-32. Given the Marauders' advantage in MaxPreps' Indiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 34th, while the Hawks are ranked 218th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Mt. Vernon's win came from a few key players Warren Central will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Zoey Wood, who went 6 of 13 on her way to 15 points along with eight boards and six assists. The team also got some help courtesy of Alaya Baxter, who went 7 of 12 on her way to 21 points.
Warren Central is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five contests, which provided a nice bump to their 12-6 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 60.4 points per game. As for Mt. Vernon, their victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 13-4.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Warren Central has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 32.3 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Mt. Vernon struggles in that department as they've been averaging 22 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Warren Central beat Mt. Vernon 52-45 when the teams last played back in November of 2023. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was Mt. Vernon's Ellery Minch, who posted 20 points in addition to seven boards and three blocks. Now that she won't be playing on Tuesday, will it be easier for Warren Central to walk away with another win? There's only one way to find out.
