The Lamar Raiders will be home for the holidays to greet the Starkville Academy Volunteers at 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both teams come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Last Saturday, Lamar beat Choctaw County 58-49.
Aryah Grace continued her habit of posting crazy stat lines, scoring 29 points. That makes it nine consecutive games in which she has scored at least 25% of Lamar's points. Charlee Castle was another key contributor, scoring 12 points.
Meanwhile, everything came up roses for Starkville Academy on the road against Smithville on Tuesday as the squad secured a 52-25 victory. The win was just what Starkville Academy needed coming off of a 65-40 defeat in their prior game.
Starkville Academy found their leader in underclassman Raylee Jones, who dropped a double-double on 16 points and 11 rebounds.
Lamar's victory bumped their record up to 6-8. As for Starkville Academy, their win bumped their record up to 10-5.
Tuesday's match is shaping up to be a scrappy contest: Lamar have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 33.4 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Starkville Academy, though, as they've been averaging only 8.1 rebounds per game. Given Lamar's sizeable advantage in that area, Starkville Academy will need to find a way to close that gap.
Lamar was able to grind out a solid victory over Starkville Academy in their previous matchup back in November, winning 63-55. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Jones, who dropped a double-double on 14 points and ten rebounds. Now that she's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Lamar still be able to contain him? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
