Basketball Game Preview: Buckeye Valley Barons vs. Franklin Heights Falcons

The Buckeye Valley Barons and the Franklin Heights Falcons will compete for holiday cheer at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Buckeye Valley is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They strolled past North Union with points to spare on Tuesday, taking the game 63-49.

Meanwhile, Franklin Heights had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 15.7 points) and they went ahead and made it four on Friday. They snuck past the Lions with a 47-43 win. While the Falcons didn't have the best season last year (they finished 3-20), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past.

Franklin Heights had a senior duo take command as Kent Hairston went 9 of 16 on his way to 22 points and Noah Kershaw went 6 for 11 on his way to 16 points and five rebounds. The match was Hairston's third in a row with at least ten points.

Franklin Heights' victory was their fourth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 4-1. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 56.0 points per game. As for Buckeye Valley, their win bumped their record up to 2-4.

Everything came up roses for Buckeye Valley against Franklin Heights in their previous meeting back in January of 2022, as the squad secured a 77-38 victory. Will Buckeye Valley repeat their success, or does Franklin Heights have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.