Basketball Game Preview: Highland Cougars vs. Monroe City Panthers

Highland hasn't had much luck against Monroe City recently, but that could start to change on Tuesday. A feisty cat fight is on tap when the Highland Cougars take on the Monroe City Panthers at 7:30 p.m.

Highland is headed into Tuesday's contest looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their sixth straight game on Monday. They took a hard 53-36 fall against Palmyra. While losing is never fun, the Cougars can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Missouri basketball rankings (they are ranked 507th, while the Panthers are ranked 59th).

Meanwhile, everything went Monroe City's way against Clark County on Tuesday as Monroe City made off with a 54-33 victory. The Panthers have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won five matchups by 21 points or more this season.

Monroe City pushed their record up to 10-2 with the win, which was their fourth straight on the road. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 64.0 points per game. As for Highland, their loss dropped their record down to 1-13.

Highland was dealt a bruising 64-34 defeat at the hands of Monroe City in their previous meeting back in January of 2024. Can Highland avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.