Preview: Shade Panthers vs. McConnellsburg Spartans
The Shade Panthers will head out on the road to face off against the McConnellsburg Spartans at 7:15 p.m. on Monday. Both teams have had a bumpy ride up to this point with 20 consecutive losses dating back to last season for Shade and three for McConnellsburg.
Last Tuesday, Shade took a serious blow against Blacklick Valley, falling 75-29. While losing is never fun, Shade can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Pennsylvania basketball rankings (they are ranked 716th, while Blacklick Valley is ranked 223rd).
Meanwhile, it's never fun to lose, and it's even less fun to lose 52-22, which was the final score in McConnellsburg's tilt against Forbes Road back in January. McConnellsburg was down 43-16 at the end of the third quarter, and things only got worse from there.
Shade dropped their record down to 0-19 with that defeat, which was their ninth straight at home. As for McConnellsburg, they have not been sharp recently as the team's lost eight of their last nine matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 4-14 record this season.
Everything came up roses for Shade against McConnellsburg in their previous matchup back in February of 2023 as the squad secured a 55-21 win. With Shade ahead 33-9 at the half, the game was all but over already.
