Basketball Game Preview: Goreville Blackcats vs. Massac County Patriots

The Goreville Blackcats are taking a road trip to take on the Massac County Patriots at 7:15 p.m. on Friday. One thing working in Goreville's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last 14 matches.

Goreville saw some tournament action on Tuesday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Fort Campbell 75-38. Given the Blackcats' advantage in MaxPreps' basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 111th in Illinois, while the Falcons are ranked 271st in Kentucky), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Massac County, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Saturday. They secured a 63-57 W over Charleston on Tuesday.

Goreville better focus on containing Jude Harmon and Jack Turner as the pair were huge in Massac County's win. Harmon went 11 of 15 on his way to 27 points, while Turner went 7 for 16 en route to 22 points.

Massac County pushed their record up to 9-8 with the win, which was their fourth straight at home. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 62.3 points per game. As for Goreville, they are on a roll lately: they've won ten of their last 11 games, which provided a nice bump to their 14-2 record this season.

Goreville came up short against Massac County when the teams last played back in February of 2021, falling 65-56. Can Goreville avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.