MHS set for Friday night showdown hoops hosting rival Nashville
Caradine rips net for high-scoring outing 27 pts.; Lady Leopards facing ranked and defending 4A state champion Nashville in conference home contests
MALVERN — The hometown Malvern Leopards and the Lady Leopards are set to return to the hardwood for conference hoops tonight to host Nashville in a Friday night showdown on the court at the Leopard Center.
The Leopards came off a huge road victory last Friday night to sweep their league season matchups against De Queen in a 20-point plus blowout road win. Leopard hoopsters Dyelon Caradine ripped the net for a 27-point high-scoring performance and displayed a 3-point shooting spree and swished six triples from downtown beyond the arc—kealen Juniel and Cedric “Ced” Simmons both poured in 13 points apiece to showcase a hometown trio of double-figures. Arric Clegg added five points with Tristian Miles dropping seven points through the basket while Ethan Martin contributed three points and Donta Cagle finishing with two points for the Leopards.
Tonight, the Leopards and the Lady Leopards have tough tasks to take on their arch-rival from Howard County in their second meeting in conference contention. The Lady Leopards face an overall top 10 ranked Nashville Lady Scrapperettes, who are the reigning 4A state champions and currently ranked No. 1 in Class 4A in the state for senior girls basketball. The Lady Leopards are going into their toughest match-up thus far. For the Leopards, Nashville 4-4 in conference are tied with Arkadelphia for the fourth spot in league standings and Malvern aims to split their season match-up to make a run for postseason play.
MHS hoopsters will be set to tip-off tonight’s contest at 6 p.m. at the Leopard Center.