Garrett is 0-10 against Angola since December of 2017 but things could change on Tuesday. The Garrett Railroaders will welcome the Angola Hornets at 7:30 p.m. Garrett is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 53.2 points per game this season.
Garrett will bounce into Tuesday's match after beating Central Noble, who they had gone 0-9 against in their nine prior meetings. Garrett strolled past Central Noble with points to spare on Friday, taking the game 53-34. Given the Railroaders' advantage in MaxPreps' Indiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 135th, while the Cougars are ranked 338th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Garrett can attribute much of their success to Parker Reed, who posted 12 points along with eight boards and four steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Kohen Smith, who had 12 points and six rebounds.
Garrett smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 11 offensive boards in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Angola had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 8.5 points) and they went ahead and made it three on Friday. They took down the Panthers 58-41. That 17 point margin sets a new team best for the Hornets this season.
Garrett better keep an eye on Ryan Stuckey. He was instrumental in Angola's win, going 7 of 15 on his way to 17 points and eight rebounds. That's the most points Stuckey has posted since back in November of 2023. The team also got some help courtesy of Niles Knox, who posted seven points in addition to nine boards and three steals.
Garrett's win was their fifth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 10-2. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 55.6 points per game. As for Angola, their victory bumped their record up to 7-3.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Garrett has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 33.9 boards per game. However, it's not like Angola struggles in that department as they've been averaging 28.1 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Garrett came up short against Angola in their previous matchup back in December of 2024, falling 56-44. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Knox, who almost dropped a double-double on 20 points and nine rebounds. Now that Garrett knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
