Basketball Game Preview: Fairley Bulldogs vs. Mitchell Tigers

The Fairley Bulldogs will venture away from home to challenge the Mitchell Tigers at 7:15 p.m. on Tuesday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.

Mitchell will be up against a hot Fairley squad: the team just extended their winning streak to five. Fairley came out on top against Wooddale by a score of 70-63 on Friday. Given the Bulldogs' advantage in MaxPreps' Tennessee basketball rankings (they are ranked 82nd, while the Cardinals are ranked 204th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Fairley's success was spearheaded by the efforts of Alarin Polk, who posted 25 points in addition to five rebounds and three steals, and Isaiah Grant, who dropped a double-double on 16 points and 14 boards. Polk is on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed two or more in the last 12 games he's played. Another player making a difference was Issac Wright Jr., who put up ten points.

Fairley smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 11 offensive boards in four consecutive matches.

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Mitchell). They enjoyed a cozy 87-71 win over Bluff City on Friday. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the team's high-flying offense, the game also marked the team's biggest victory of the season.

Mitchell's win bumped their record up to 3-7. As for Fairley, they have also been performing incredibly well recently as they've won 11 of their last 12 contests, which provided a nice bump to their 18-5 record this season.

Everything came up roses for Fairley against Mitchell in their previous meeting back in January, as the team secured a 79-32 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Fairley since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.