By Michael Letendre
We’re already here in the scholastic boys basketball schedule as Bristol Central and Bristol Eastern go to battle for only the second time ever during the month of December.
On Tuesday, the Bristol Central Holiday Classic commences with four exciting games.
Two girls and two boys contests will take place from the Charles C. Marsh Gymnasium with the feature game of the evening being the boys showdown between the Rams and the Lancers.
And for the first time in a long while, the outcome of this game could go either way.
It’s that wide open and at 7:30 p.m., the first city series battle of the young season will tipoff (unless those other three games before the Central/Eastern confrontation goes long).
Here’s a quick look at both squads as Central and Eastern lock horns on Tuesday evening:
Bristol Central Holiday Classic – Dec. 27
BRISTOL EASTERN vs. BRISTOL CENTRAL, CCC South Showdown
Time: 7:30 p.m. (tentative start after three games)
Location: Charles C. Marsh Gymnasium
Series Lead: The Rams lead the all-time series 74-55. This is the 130th showdown between the schools, the most for either program.
The Streak: Central has won the last six games against Eastern, snaring the victories by an average of 29.8 points-per-game.
Last 10 games between the schools:
Date Winner/Score Deficit
Feb. 21, 2022 Bristol Central/76-50 26
Dec. 28, 2021 Bristol Central/73-24 49
March 19, 2021 Bristol Central/50-26 24
Feb. 12, 2021 Bristol Central/66-51 15
Feb. 24, 2020 Bristol Central/60-34 26
Jan. 24, 2020 Bristol Central/75-36 39
Feb. 18, 2019 Bristol Eastern/57-51 6
Jan. 18, 2019 Bristol Central/47-39 8
Feb. 19, 2018 Bristol Central/46-42 4
Jan. 18, 2018 Bristol Central/41-30 11
Of Note: Eastern last won against Central during Donovan Clingan’s freshman campaign (57-51 back on Feb. 18, 2019).
Over Clingan’s first victory against the Lancers as a freshman and the two played while he was still in eighth grade, the Rams’ margin of victory was just 7.7 points-per-game (23 total points).
Will this contest be a little more even than the last eight or so this time around?
Could Eastern finally breakthrough against its longtime nemesis?
Check back with TBE as we’ll break down both teams and dive a little deeper into the battle between the Lancers and Rams.
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