Basketball Game Preview: First Baptist Crusaders vs. Liberty Christian Eagles

The First Baptist Crusaders will take on the Liberty Christian Eagles in a holiday battle at at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. First Baptist is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 50 points per game this season.

First Baptist is headed out in good spirits considering the team just ended their winless streak on the road against Lake Region Christian on Thursday. First Baptist walked away with a 46-39 victory over Lake Region Christian.

First Baptist's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Caleb Lindsay, who went 5 for 11 on his way to 12 points and five rebounds. The dominant performance also gave Lindsay a new career-high in assists (four). Jared Dudek was another key player, putting up seven points along with 12 rebounds and five assists.

First Baptist smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 17 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive boards in 22 consecutive matches dating back to last season.

Meanwhile, Liberty Christian played a tough contest on Tuesday in which they were outscored in every quarter. They were outmatched by St. Francis Christian and fell 69-42. The Eagles haven't had much luck with the Patriots recently, as the team's come up short the last four times they've met.

Liberty Christian now has a losing record at 1-2. As for First Baptist, the victory got them back to even at 4-4.

First Baptist and Liberty Christian were neck-and-neck when the teams last played back in February of 2023, but First Baptist came up empty-handed after a 29-28 defeat. Can First Baptist avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.