Basketball Game Preview: Shining Star Sports Academy Panthers vs. NC GBB Academy National Eagles

Two dominant guards in Harissoum Coulibaly and Amayah Barnes are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Shining Star Sports Academy Panthers and the NC GBB Academy National Eagles will round out the year against one another at at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday. One thing working in Shining Star Sports Academy's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last eight matchups.

Shining Star Sports Academy is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another highly-ranked state team: Winston Salem Christian National, who was ranked first in their home state at the time (Shining Star Sports Academy was ranked sixth). Shining Star Sports Academy came out on top against Winston Salem Christian National by a score of 61-50 on Friday.

Coulibaly was her usual excellent self, going 7 of 11 on her way to 16 points in addition to seven rebounds and five steals. She is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last seven games she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Syvannah Dawson, who posted 12 points.

Meanwhile, NC GBB Academy National posted their biggest victory since February 22nd on Friday. They were the clear victor by a 62-36 margin over 1 of 1 Academy. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Eagles.

Shining Star Sports Academy has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won eight of their last nine games, which provided a nice bump to their 11-3 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 68.0 points per game. As for NC GBB Academy National, their win bumped their record up to 8-3.

Shining Star Sports Academy strolled past NC GBB Academy National when the teams last played back in January by a score of 71-55. Will Shining Star Sports Academy repeat their success, or does NC GBB Academy National have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.