Basketball Game Preview: Maple Heights Mustangs vs. Bedford Bearcats

After both having extra time off, the Maple Heights Mustangs and the Bedford Bearcats will dust off their jerseys to challenge one another at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. The teams are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Maple Heights has struggled recently with four defeats in a row, while Bedford will arrive with three straight wins.

Last Sunday, Maple Heights came up short against Cleveland Central Catholic and fell 79-69.

Meanwhile, Bedford didn't have too much trouble with Revere last Sunday as they won 70-54. Given the Bearcats' advantage in MaxPreps' Ohio basketball rankings (they are ranked 187th, while the Minutemen are ranked 450th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Bedford is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five matches, which provided a nice bump to their 6-3 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 64.4 points per game. As for Maple Heights, they now have a losing record at 3-4.

Maple Heights came up short against Bedford in their previous matchup back in February, falling 58-53. Can Maple Heights avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.