Basketball Game Preview: Sherwood Marksmen vs. Crest Ridge Cougars

The Sherwood Marksmen are taking a road trip to square off against the Crest Ridge Cougars at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday.

Last Tuesday, Sherwood came up short against Butler and fell 58-47. The Marksmen have struggled against the Bears recently, as the game was their third consecutive lost matchup.

Meanwhile, Crest Ridge had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 15 points) and they went ahead and made it four on Tuesday. They came out on top against the Bearcats by a score of 47-34. Given the Cougars' advantage in MaxPreps' Missouri basketball rankings (they are ranked 177th, while the Bearcats are ranked 508th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Crest Ridge's win came from a few key players Sherwood will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Kayley Marten, who went 8 of 13 on her way to 16 points and six rebounds. She is also on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last four games she's played. Brooklynn Fleming was another key player, going 5 for 7 en route to 13 points and four steals.

Crest Ridge smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in six consecutive games.

Crest Ridge has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won seven of their last eight matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 16-3 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 55.0 points per game. As for Sherwood, their loss dropped their record down to 7-11.

Sherwood opened the new year with a less-than-successful 38-27 defeat to Crest Ridge. Can Sherwood avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.