Basketball Game Preview: Chiawana Riverhawks vs. Mead Panthers

The Chiawana Riverhawks will head out to face off against the Mead Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.

Chiawana is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Lewis & Clark 75-47. The Riverhawks have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won ten contests by 20 points or more this season.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Mead, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Saturday. They walked away with a 71-58 victory over Ferris on Tuesday. Given the Panthers' advantage in MaxPreps' Washington basketball rankings (they are ranked 25th, while the Saxons are ranked 191st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Mead pushed their record up to 18-5 with the win, which was their tenth straight at home. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 74.5 points over those games. As for Chiawana, they have been performing well recently as they've won 11 of their last 13 matches, which provided a nice bump to their 20-4 record this season.

Chiawana lost to Mead on the road by a decisive 63-49 margin when the teams last played back in December of 2021. Can Chiawana avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.