Maiden is on a four-game streak of home wins, while Lincolnton is on a six-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Maiden Blue Devils will take on the Lincolnton Wolves at 8:00 p.m. on Friday. Maiden will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps North Carolina Rankings (they are ranked 205th, while Lincolnton is ranked 74th).
Last Friday, Maiden was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 58-53 to Bandys.
Despite the defeat, Maiden had strong showings from Zion White, who scored 14 points along with two steals, and Landon Teague, who scored 12 points along with eight rebounds. Raheim Misher was another key contributor, scoring five points along with 11 rebounds.
Meanwhile, Lincolnton strolled past East Burke with points to spare on Tuesday, taking the game 64-50. That's two games straight that Lincolnton has won by exactly 14 points.
Landen Lyerly and LJ Smith IV were among the main playmakers for Lincolnton as the former dropped a double-double on 18 points and 19 rebounds and the latter scored 31 points along with nine rebounds. Smith IV is absolutely dominating the point category: he's posted at least 15 every time he's taken the court this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Tyler Mcclain, who scored six points.
Maiden has not been sharp recently, as they've lost four of their last five games, which put a noticeable dent in their 8-6 record this season. As for Lincolnton, their victory bumped their record up to 13-2.
This contest is shaping up to be a blowout: Maiden hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having only averaged 60.9 points per game. It's a different story for Lincolnton, though, as they've been averaging only 73.9 points per game. The only thing between Maiden and another offensive beatdown is Lincolnton. Will they be able to keep them contained?
Maiden beat Lincolnton 57-48 in their previous matchup back in February of 2023. Does Maiden have another victory up their sleeve, or will Lincolnton turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
