Basketball Game Preview: Norton Bluejays vs. Smith Center Redmen

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Previous Games

02/09/24 - Away	58-45 W
02/10/23 - Home	47-28 W
02/11/22 - Away	55-38 W
02/22/21 - Home	69-35 W
12/20/19 - Away	60-51 W
+ 5 more games

Norton is 9-1 against Smith Center since December of 2015 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Friday. The Norton Bluejays will be playing in front of their home fans against the Smith Center Redmen at 7:30 p.m. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.

Smith Center will be up against a hot Norton team: the squad just extended their winning streak to three. Norton took down Decatur Community 62-47 on Tuesday. Given the Bluejays' advantage in MaxPreps' Kansas basketball rankings (they are ranked 56th, while the Red Devils are ranked 210th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Meanwhile, Smith Center didn't have too much trouble with Superior on Monday as they won 59-41. That 18 point margin sets a new team best for the Redmen this season.

Norton pushed their record up to 13-4 with the win, which was their fifth straight on the road. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 55.8 points over those games. As for Smith Center, their victory bumped their record up to 5-11.

Norton was able to grind out a solid win over Smith Center in their previous matchup back in February of 2024, winning 58-45. Will Norton repeat their success, or does Smith Center have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.