Basketball Game Preview: Coffee Trojans vs. Veterans Warhawks

Two dominant forwards in Khyolic Paulk and Tristen Abner are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Coffee Trojans will be playing at home against the Veterans Warhawks at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Coffee will be strutting in after a win while Veterans will be coming in after a defeat.

Having struggled with ten losses in a row, Coffee turned things around against Atkinson County last Saturday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 46-43 victory over the Rebels. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Trojans have posted since November 25, 2024.

Coffee can attribute much of their success to Tico Smith, who posted 16 points. Those 16 points gave Smith a new career-high. Jeremiah Bazell was another key player, putting up six points and five rebounds.

Coffee smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 17 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive boards in three consecutive matchups.

Meanwhile, after a string of three wins, Veterans' good fortune finally ran out on Saturday. They took a 61-46 bruising from Houston County. While losing is never fun, the Warhawks can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Georgia basketball rankings (they are ranked 137th, while the Bears are ranked 37th).

Coffee's victory ended an eight-game drought on the road and puts them at 4-15. As for Veterans, their defeat dropped their record down to 12-8.

Coffee lost to Veterans at home by a decisive 68-49 margin in their previous meeting on January 3rd. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Abner, who went 9 of 11 on his way to 21 points in addition to eight boards and three steals. Now that Coffee knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.