Preview: Valley Regional Warriors vs. Fitch Falcons
The Valley Regional Warriors will look to defend their home court on Wednesday against the Fitch Falcons at 7:00 p.m. The squads are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Valley Regional has struggled recently with six losses in a row, while Fitch will arrive with three straight wins.
On Monday, Valley Regional was the victim of a rough 61-41 loss at the hands of Morgan. While losing is never fun, Valley Regional can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Connecticut basketball rankings (they are ranked 162nd, while Morgan is ranked 50th).
Despite their loss, Valley Regional saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Rex Grabowski, who dropped a double-double on 13 points and ten rebounds, was perhaps the best of all. Another player making a difference was Conor Quinn, who scored eight points along with five assists and four steals.
Fitch only won by three when they last took the court, which might have inspired the 30-point they dealt East Lyme on Friday. Fitch blew past East Lyme, posting a 73-43 victory on the road.
Fitch can attribute much of their success to Jayvon "JJ" Robinson, who dropped a double-double on 13 points and 13 assists, and Xavier Goode, who scored 22 points along with seven rebounds and four steals. Robinson is crushing the steal category: he's posted at least two every time he's taken the court this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Si?kis Reels, who scored nine points along with five rebounds.
Valley Regional's loss was their 12th straight on the road dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 4-14. As for Fitch, their victory bumped their record up to 12-5.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Valley Regional have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 31.4 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Fitch struggles in that department as they've been averaging 33 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Valley Regional and Fitch were neck-and-neck when the teams last played back in December of 2015, but Valley Regional came up empty-handed after a 76-75 loss. Thankfully for Valley Regional, Eddie Volkerts (who shot 4-for-10 from downtown and dropped a double-double on 23 points and 15 rebounds) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
