Basketball Game Preview: Lake Region Christian Hornets vs. First Baptist Crusaders

The Lake Region Christian Hornets will face off against the First Baptist Crusaders at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Having struggled with 19 losses in a row dating back to last season, Lake Region Christian turned things around against St. Cloud Christian on Tuesday. They walked away with a 46-38 victory over St. Cloud Christian. The Hornets' offense checked out after the first half but had enough points banked to take the game anyway.

Lake Region Christian's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Tamara DeVries, who posted six points and 18 rebounds. Those 18 rebounds gave DeVries a new career-high. Aleah DeVries was another key player, putting up 11 points along with five rebounds and four steals.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for First Baptist, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Monday. Everything went their way against Woodcrest Baptist Academy on Tuesday as First Baptist made off with a 52-30 victory. The game was all but wrapped up at the end of the third, by which point the Crusaders had established a 21 point advantage.

Lake Region Christian better focus on containing Keira Wynja and Lydia Wynja as the pair were huge in First Baptist's win. Keira went 5 of 12 on her way to 13 points and five steals, while Lydia dropped a double-double on 18 points and 12 boards. That makes it three consecutive games in which Lydia has scored at least a third of First Baptist's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Maya McKinney, who had ten points.

Lake Region Christian's first win this season bumped their record up to 1-3. As for First Baptist, their victory bumped their record up to 4-2.

Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Lake Region Christian has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 29.2 boards per game. However, it's not like First Baptist struggles in that department as they've been averaging 40.5 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.

Lake Region Christian took a serious blow against First Baptist when the teams last played back in February, falling 62-30. That contest was all but decided by halftime, at which point Lake Region Christian was down 35-8.