Basketball Game Preview: Mt. Vernon Rams vs. Pinckneyville Panthers

The Mt. Vernon Rams will challenge the Pinckneyville Panthers at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. Mt. Vernon is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 62.3 points per game this season.

Mt. Vernon picked up another tournament win on Monday. They blew past Central, posting a 65-25 victory. Given the Rams' advantage in MaxPreps' basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 20th in Illinois, while the Tigers are ranked 261st in Missouri), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Mt. Vernon can attribute much of their success to Kamaree Pollard, who posted 13 points, and Arwyn Wilkey, who had 14 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Laniyah Shelby, who put up nine points.

Meanwhile, Pinckneyville entered their tilt with Carterville on Monday with six consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with seven. They strolled past the Lions with points to spare, taking the game 46-28.

Pinckneyville is also on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last nine contests, which provided a nice bump to their 15-5 record this season. As for Mt. Vernon, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 17-3.

Everything came up roses for Mt. Vernon against Pinckneyville in their previous matchup back in November of 2021, as the squad secured a 71-38 victory. Will Mt. Vernon repeat their success, or does Pinckneyville have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.