Basketball Game Preview: DeKalb Barons vs. Leo Lions

DeKalb hasn't had much luck against Leo recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The DeKalb Barons will face off against the Leo Lions at 7:30 p.m. DeKalb will be strutting in after a victory while Leo will be coming in after a defeat.

DeKalb is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They came out on top against Fort Wayne Concordia Lutheran by a score of 64-55 on Tuesday. The win was a breath of fresh air for the Barons as it put an end to their three-game losing streak.

Meanwhile, Leo entered their match against Angola on Wednesday without any home losses, but there's a first time for everything. Leo was just a bucket shy of victory and fell 42-41 to Angola. The Lions have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

DeKalb will have to contain Leah Shappell as she made an impact in Leo's last game. She went 5 for 12 on her way to 16 points in addition to eight boards and four steals. That was a full 39% of Leo's points, marking the fourth time in a row she's posted more than a third of the team's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Mackenzie Collins, who put up eight points along with five boards and five steals.

Leo's loss ended a three-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 7-5. As for DeKalb, their victory bumped their record up to 5-3.

DeKalb and Leo were neck-and-neck in their previous matchup back in December of 2023, but DeKalb came up empty-handed after a 47-46 defeat. Can DeKalb avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.