Preview: Holmen Vikings vs. Sparta Spartans
After three games on the road, Holmen is heading back home. They will take on the Sparta Spartans at 7:15 p.m. on Thursday. Holmen knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with flashy point totals in its past ten contests -- so hopefully Sparta likes a good challenge.
Even though La Crosse Logan scored an imposing 56 points on Friday, Holmen still came out on top. Holmen walked away with a 69-56 victory over La Crosse Logan.
Meanwhile, Sparta's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Thursday after their sixth straight loss. They ended up on the wrong side of a rough 77-52 walloping at the hands of La Crosse Central. While losing is never fun, Sparta can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Wisconsin basketball rankings (they are ranked 385th, while La Crosse Central is ranked 153rd).
Despite their loss, Sparta saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. John Rice, who scored 17 points, was perhaps the best of all. Another player making a difference was Owen Berendes, who scored eight points.
Sparta struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only four offensive rebounds. That's the fewest offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
Holmen has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won nine of their last ten contests, which provided a massive bump to their 11-12 record this season. As for Sparta, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost 13 of their last 14 matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 4-19 record this season.
Holmen strolled past Sparta when the teams last played back in January by a score of 82-63. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Sparta's Gavin Rhead, who dropped a double-double on 18 points and 15 rebounds. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Holmen still be able to contain Rhead? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
