The Monroe Golden Tornadoes will head out on the road to square off against the Dougherty Trojans at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both teams took a loss in their last game, so they'll have plenty of motivation to get the 'W'.
Monroe unfortunately witnessed the end of their three-game winning streak on Tuesday. They took a 55-48 hit to the loss column at the hands of Crisp County. The loss was a bit of a surprise, as Monroe came into the matchup with a sizable advantage in MaxPreps' Georgia basketball rankings (they are ranked 25th, while the Cougars are ranked 291st).
Despite their defeat, Monroe saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Justin Burns, who scored eight points along with four blocks, was perhaps the best of all. Burns has been hot recently, having posted two or more blocks the last 11 times he's played. Zyon Robinson was another key contributor, scoring eight points along with two steals.
Meanwhile, Dougherty's game on Tuesday was all tied up 28-28 at the half, but sadly for them it didn't stay that way. They were just a bucket shy of victory and fell 54-53 to Columbus. Dougherty's loss signaled the end of their four-game winning streak.
Monroe's record is now 17-4. Dougherty's record is now 15-7.
Monroe was able to grind out a solid win over the Trojans in their previous meeting back in January, winning 59-48. The rematch might be a little tougher for Monroe since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
