Basketball Game Preview: Starks Panthers vs. Bell City Bruins

The Starks Panthers just played last yesterday, but they'll still welcome the Bell City Bruins at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

On Wednesday, Starks strolled past Johnson Bayou with points to spare, taking the game 56-42. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Panthers.

Meanwhile, Bell City came tearing into Tuesday's matchup with six straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 33.7 points) and they left with even more momentum. They snuck past the Hornets with a 48-43 win. Given the Bruins' advantage in MaxPreps' Louisiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 22nd, while the Hornets are ranked 112th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Starks is also on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four games, which provided a nice bump to their 20-11 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 52.3 points per game. As for Bell City, they pushed their record up to 19-3 with the victory, which was their fourth straight at home.

Starks took a serious blow against Bell City when the teams last played back in November of 2024, falling 56-21. Will Starks have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.