Preview: Peyton Panthers vs. Belleview Christian Bruins
The Peyton Panthers will head out on the road to square off against the Belleview Christian Bruins at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Peyton comes in on three and Belleview Christian on ten.
Peyton scored the most points they've had all season to find success on Wednesday. They blew past Dolores Huerta Prep, posting a 79-47 win at home. Given Peyton's advantage in MaxPreps' Colorado basketball rankings (they are ranked 106th, while Dolores Huerta Prep is ranked 267th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Peyton's success was spearheaded by the efforts of Ayden Breese, who scored 18 points along with six assists and two steals, and Brian Keairnes, who scored 13 points along with eight assists and seven steals. It was the first time this season that Keairnes posted eight or more assists. Another player making a difference was Bryce Love, who scored ten points along with three blocks and two steals.
Meanwhile, even though Pikes Peak Christian scored an imposing 56 points on Thursday, Belleview Christian still came out on top. Belleview Christian took their game against Pikes Peak Christian 67-56.
Belleview Christian's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Brandon Ewing, who scored 20 points along with five assists and two steals. Ewing is crushing the steal category: he's posted at least two every time he's taken the court this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Jagga Sandhu, who scored 16 points along with five rebounds and three steals.
Peyton has been performing well recently as they've won six of their last eight matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 11-6 record this season. As for Belleview Christian, they pushed their record up to 16-1 with that win, which was their 19th straight at home dating back to last season.
Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as the two teams are some of the highest scoring teams in the league. Peyton hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 59.3 points per game. However, it's not like Belleview Christian struggles in that department as they've been averaging 72.1 points per game. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can run the score up higher.
Peyton might still be hurting after the 66-41 defeat they got from Belleview Christian in their previous matchup back in January of 2023. Can Peyton avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
