Basketball Game Preview: Newark Norsemen vs. Indian Creek Timberwolves

The Newark Norsemen will face off against the Indian Creek Timberwolves at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Newark is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 55.1 points per game this season.

Newark is headed into the match having just posted their biggest win since January 14th on Tuesday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat LaMoille 63-36.

Payton Wills continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, dropping a double-double on 19 points and ten boards. That's the most rebounds he has posted since back in December of 2023. The team also got some help courtesy of Cody Kulbartz, who posted six points along with 13 boards and five blocks.

Newark smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 17 offensive boards. That's the most offensive rebounds they've managed all season.

Meanwhile, Indian Creek posted their closest victory since December 2, 2024 on Tuesday. They skirted past Earlville 33-30. The 33-point effort marked the Timberwolves' lowest-scoring contest of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.

Newark better focus on containing Everett Willis and Isaac Willis as the pair were huge in Indian Creek's win. Everett almost dropped a double-double on 15 points and nine rebounds, while Isaac scored seven points and six boards.

The win (which was Indian Creek's third in a row) raised their record to 17-8. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 58.7 points per game. As for Newark, their record now sits at 14-11.

Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Newark has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 27 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Indian Creek struggles in that department as they've been averaging 33.8 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.

Newark beat Indian Creek 54-46 when the teams last played back in December of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for Newark since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.