Basketball Game Preview: Kankakee Valley Kougars vs. River Forest Ingots

The Kankakee Valley Kougars will square off against the River Forest Ingots at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Kankakee Valley is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 54.3 points per game this season.

Having struggled with three defeats in a row, Kankakee Valley turned things around against North Judson-San Pierre on Friday. They strolled past the Bluejays with points to spare, taking the game 50-31. The Kougars pushed the score to 45-17 by the end of the third, a deficit the Bluejays cut but never quite recovered from.

Brady Sampson

Steals

01/04/25 @ River Forest	4
12/07/24 @ Morgan Township	4
02/28/25 vs North Judson-San Pierre	3
02/25/25 vs 21st Century Charter	3
02/19/25 vs Knox	3
+ 16 more games

Brady Sampson was his usual excellent self, dropping a double-double with 18 points and 12 boards. He also grabbed three steals, which is notable because Kankakee Valley is 6-2 when he posts at least three steals, but 6-9 otherwise. Brodie Ellenwood was another key player, putting up nine points.

Meanwhile, River Forest came tearing into Thursday's matchup with three straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 24 points), and they left with even more momentum. They blew past the Bobcats, posting a 66-36 victory. The Ingots have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won ten contests by 21 points or more this season.

River Forest's win bumped their record up to 16-6. As for Kankakee Valley, they now have a winning record of 12-11.

Kankakee Valley beat River Forest 58-46 in their previous meeting back in January. Will Kankakee Valley repeat their success, or does River Forest have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.