Basketball Game Preview: Derby Panthers vs. Hutchinson Salthawks

The Derby Panthers will face off against the Hutchinson Salthawks at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. One thing working in Derby's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points every time they've taken the court this season.

Derby is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They simply couldn't be stopped on Tuesday as they easily beat Haysville Campus 89-50. Given the Panthers' advantage in MaxPreps' Kansas basketball rankings (they are ranked third, while the Colts are ranked 273rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Cayden Titus

Points

02/11/25 @ Haysville Campus	14
02/07/25 @ Eisenhower	9
02/04/25 vs Valley Center	7
02/03/25 @ Junction City	6
01/28/25 @ Hutchinson	12
+ 11 more games

Derby got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Cayden Titus out in front who went 5-for-6 en route to 14 points in addition to six boards and five assists. Titus continues to improve, besting his previous point total in each of the last three games he's played. Another player making a difference was Jack Ulwelling, who went 6-for-9 from beyond the arc on his way to 20 points.

Meanwhile, Hutchinson beat Valley Center 60-47 on Tuesday. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Salthawks.

Hutchinson's victory bumped their record up to 6-8. As for Derby, they pushed their record up to 16-0 with the win, which was their 11th straight on the road dating back to last season.

Derby strolled past Hutchinson when the teams last played back in January by a score of 69-54. Will Derby repeat their success, or does Hutchinson have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.