Basketball Game Preview: Shawnee Indians vs. Defiance Bulldogs

Shawnee is 8-2 against Defiance since December of 2018 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Saturday. The Shawnee Indians will take on the Defiance Bulldogs at 4:00 p.m. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Shawnee comes in on 13 and Defiance on four.

Shawnee is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They breezed past Bowling Green to the tune of 67-26. The Indians have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won ten contests by 21 points or more this season.

Trevick Bertke

Points

02/25/25 vs Bowling Green	21
02/20/25 vs Bowsher	15
02/15/25 @ Wayne Trace	22
02/14/25 @ Ottawa-Glandorf	16
02/08/25 @ Botkins	22
+ 6 more games

Shawnee found their leader in sophomore Trevick Bertke, who to rack up 21 points and five assists. Bertke's evening made it 11 games in a row in which he has scored at least 15 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Jagger Hutchins, who en route to 14 points.

Shawnee smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in three consecutive matches.

Meanwhile, Defiance didn't have too much breathing room in their game against Wapakoneta on Tuesday, but they still walked away with a 53-48 win. Given the Bulldogs' advantage in MaxPreps' Ohio basketball rankings (they are ranked 152nd, while the Redskins are ranked 321st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Shawnee pushed their record up to 22-2 with the victory, which was their 17th straight at home dating back to last season. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 65.5 points over those games. As for Defiance, their win bumped their record up to 19-5.

Shawnee was able to grind out a solid victory over Defiance in their previous meeting back in January, winning 67-55. Does Shawnee have another victory up their sleeve, or will Defiance turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.