Recap: Elmwood-Murdock Knights vs. Johnson County Central Thunderbirds
The Elmwood-Murdock Knights had already won 12 in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 23.3 points), and they went ahead and made it 13 on Tuesday. They came out on top against Johnson County Central by a score of 63-54. Given Elmwood-Murdock's advantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska basketball rankings (they are ranked 23rd, while Johnson County Central is ranked 187th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Elmwood-Murdock's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Tatum Backemeyer, who scored 24 points along with three steals. Backemeyer has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last six times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Laney Frahm, who almost dropped a double-double on 19 points and nine rebounds.
Elmwood-Murdock's victory was their sixth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 19-1. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 51.2 points per game. As for Johnson County Central, they are on a three-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 9-11.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Elmwood-Murdock is on the road again on Thursday and plays Mead at 6:00 p.m. on February 8th. Mead comes in on a streak of failing to score more than 23 points in their last eight games, a trend the team is of course eager to reverse. As for Johnson County Central, they will head out on the road to square off against College View Academy on Thursday. College View Academy will roll in looking for their fourth straight victory, something Johnson County Central surely won't give up without a fight.
