The Rock Hills Grizzlies will head out on the road to take on the Thunder Ridge Longhorns at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Rock Hills is coming into the contest hot, having won their last five games.
Rock Hills is headed into the match after thoroughly thrashing Lincoln: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Rock Hills blew Lincoln out of the water with a 52-13 final score. The Grizzlies have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won nine games by 23 points or more this season.
Halle Mizner
| 02/14/25 vs Lincoln | 25 |
| 02/07/25 @ Lakeside | 22 |
| 02/04/25 @ Sylvan-Lucas | 24 |
Rock Hills relied on the efforts of Halle Mizner, who dropped a double-double with 25 points and ten rebounds, and Bethany Simmelink, who went 6-for-15 to rack up 15 points along with six assists and six steals. The contest was Mizner's third in a row with at least 22 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Alivia Lindberg, who posted five points and seven boards.
Meanwhile, Thunder Ridge came up short against Hill City on Monday and fell 45-32.
Rock Hills will need to focus on slowing down Lexi Rust, one of several Thunder Ridge players who made an impact when they last played. She put up eight points and ten rebounds. The dominant performance gave Rust a new career-high in boards. Another player making a difference was Jenna Barnes, who had seven points and four steals.
Even though they lost, Thunder Ridge smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 13 offensive boards in eight consecutive matches.
Rock Hills pushed their record up to 15-3 with the win, which was their sixth straight at home. The wins came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 20.0 points over those games. As for Thunder Ridge, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost five of their last six games, which has put a noticeable dent in their 6-10 record this season.
Keep an eye on the arc in Friday's contest: Rock Hills has been dynamite from deep this season, having made 35% of their three-pointers per game. It's a different story for Thunder Ridge, though, as they've only made 17% of their threes this season. Given Rock Hills' sizable advantage in that area, Thunder Ridge will need to find a way to close that gap.
Everything came up roses for Rock Hills against Thunder Ridge in their previous matchup back in January, as the team secured a 57-29 victory. Does Rock Hills have another victory up their sleeve, or will Thunder Ridge turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
