Basketball Game Preview: Wapakoneta Redskins vs. Shawnee Indians

Wapakoneta is 2-8 against Shawnee since January of 2018 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Wapakoneta Redskins will face off against the Shawnee Indians at 7:30 p.m. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Wapakoneta took a loss when they played away from home on Friday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Saturday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 44-41 victory over Jackson Center. The win was all the more spectacular given the Redskins' disadvantage in MaxPreps' Ohio basketball rankings (they are ranked 502nd, while the Tigers are ranked 113th).

Meanwhile, Shawnee waltzed into their matchup on Saturday with three straight wins... but they left with four. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat the Wildcats 65-33. The Indians have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won five games by 21 points or more this season.

Shawnee found their leader in sophomore Trevick Bertke, who went 9 of 11 en route to 18 points and four blocks. The dominant performance gave Bertke a new career-high in blocks. The team also got some help courtesy of Jagger Hutchins, who went 5 for 7 on his way to 13 points and five boards.

Shawnee was working as a unit and finished the game with 21 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.

Shawnee's victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 13-2. As for Wapakoneta, their win bumped their record up to 6-8.

Wapakoneta couldn't quite finish off Shawnee when the teams last played back in January of 2024 and fell 47-45. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Shawnee's Beckett Bertke, who went 9 of 15 en route to 26 points and seven rebounds. Now that Wapakoneta knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.