The Immanuel Eagles will head out on the road to take on the McLane Highlanders at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday. Immanuel is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 57.6 points per game this season.
Last Wednesday, Immanuel was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 43-37 to Central Valley Christian. While losing is never fun, the Eagles can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 763rd, while the Cavaliers are ranked 352nd).
James Galpin
| 02/12/25 vs Central Valley Christian | 57% |
| 02/06/25 @ Reedley | 50% |
| 02/04/25 @ Kingsburg | 64% |
| 01/30/25 vs Selma | 63% |
| 01/28/25 vs Sierra Pacific | 50% |
| + 3 more games |
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the best came from James Galpin, who posted nine points and five rebounds. He is also on a roll when it comes to shooting accuracy, as he's posted one of at least 50% in the last eight games he's played. Another player making a difference was Caden Joseph, who earned ten points.
Meanwhile, McLane was not able to break out of their rough patch on Wednesday as the team picked up their third straight defeat. They were six points away from ending the streak, but they lost a 46-40 heartbreaker at the hands of Sanger West.
Like Immanuel, McLane lost despite seeing results from several players. Demetrius Simon led the charge by almost dropping a double-double with ten points and nine boards. The team also got some help courtesy of Jazmier Boyland, who put up nine points and five rebounds.
Even though they lost, McLane smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in five consecutive games.
McLane's loss dropped their record down to 17-11. As for Immanuel, their defeat dropped their record down to 10-17.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Immanuel has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 31.1 boards per game. However, it's not like McLane struggles in that department as they've been averaging 33.7 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Immanuel came up short against McLane in their previous meeting back in December of 2021, falling 80-76. Thankfully for Immanuel, Amerion Pruitt (who had 27 points and eight boards) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
