Basketball Game Preview: Draughn Wildcats vs. Avery County Vikings

The Draughn Wildcats will venture away from home to face off against the Avery County Vikings at 8:00 p.m. on Thursday. Draughn has a tough task ahead: they'll enter the matchup with five straight losses, while Avery County will come in with three straight wins.

On Tuesday, Draughn took a blow against Owen, falling 83-55.

While Avery County didn't have the best season last year (they finished 10-16), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past. They simply couldn't be stopped on Tuesday as they easily beat Rosman 77-14. The Vikings have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won three contests by 24 points or more this season.

Draughn better keep an eye on Oak Markland. He was instrumental in Avery County's win, going 9 of 14 en route to 21 points along with five rebounds and four steals. Markland continues to improve, besting his previous point total in each of the last three games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Landon Liner, who went 6 of 9 on his way to 13 points and six rebounds.

Avery County smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 21 offensive boards. That's the most offensive rebounds they've managed all season.

Avery County's victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 7-1. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 69.0 points per game. As for Draughn, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-7.

Draughn didn't have too much breathing room in their game against Avery County when the teams last played back in January, but they still walked away with a 64-58 win. Will Draughn repeat their success, or does Avery County have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.