Preview: North Schuylkill Spartans vs. Tamaqua Blue Raiders
The North Schuylkill Spartans will head out on the road to square off against the Tamaqua Blue Raiders at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. North Schuylkill is looking to tack on another W to their seven-game streak on the road dating back to last season.
North Schuylkill struggled with three-point shooting accuracy on Thursday (Pottsville was 66% better) and sadly the final score reflected it. North Schuylkill was just a bucket shy of victory and fell 49-48 to Pottsville.
Despite their loss, North Schuylkill saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Jack Keiter, who scored 17 points along with seven rebounds and two steals, was perhaps the best of all. Keiter has been hot recently, having posted 15 or more points the last three times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Zane Zulkowski, who scored 15 points along with five rebounds and three blocks.
Tamaqua suffered their biggest loss since December 11, 2023 on Thursday. They ended up on the wrong side of a tough 76-54 walloping at the hands of Blue Mountain. While losing is never fun, Tamaqua can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Pennsylvania basketball rankings (they are ranked 388th, while Blue Mountain is ranked 94th).
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Cooper Ansbach, who scored 11 points along with nine rebounds and five assists. He has been hot recently, having posted eight or more rebounds the last four times he's played. Another player making a difference was Connor Dillon, who scored 17 points.
Tamaqua struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only two offensive rebounds. That's the fewest offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
North Schuylkill's record is now 9-5. Tamaqua's record is now 7-7.
This contest is shaping up to be a blowout: North Schuylkill hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having only averaged 59.4 points per game. It's a different story for Tamaqua, though, as they've been averaging only 57.2 points per game. The only thing between North Schuylkill and another offensive beatdown is Tamaqua. Will they be able to keep them contained?
North Schuylkill was able to grind out a solid win over Tamaqua in their previous meeting back in December of 2023, winning 58-49. The rematch might be a little tougher for North Schuylkill since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
