Preview: Waverly Vikings vs. Hastings Tigers
Waverly is 8-2 against Hastings since February of 2015, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Thursday. The Waverly Vikings will be playing at home against the Hastings Tigers at 5:30 p.m. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Waverly has three straight victories, Hastings has seven straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
A well-balanced attack led Waverly over Duchesne in every quarter on their way to victory on Tuesday. Waverly enjoyed a cozy 45-31 win over Duchesne. Given Waverly's advantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska basketball rankings (they are ranked 12th, while Duchesne is ranked 106th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Waverly's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Peyton Tritz, who scored 16 points. Another player making a difference was Parker Christiansen, who scored ten points.
Meanwhile, Hastings had to suffer through a rough 58-26 loss at the hands of Elkhorn. Hastings has struggled against Elkhorn recently, as their match on Saturday was their fifth consecutive lost matchup.
Waverly's victory was their ninth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 13-4. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 57.3 points per game. As for Hastings, they have been struggling recently as they've lost eight of their last nine matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 3-14 record this season.
Everything came up roses for Waverly against Hastings in their previous meeting back in December of 2023 as the team secured a 62-24 win. With Waverly ahead 49-12 at the half, the game was all but over already.
