Basketball Game Preview: Catholic Central Crusaders vs. Bellaire Big Reds

The Catholic Central Crusaders will venture away from home to take on the Bellaire Big Reds at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Catholic Central is coming into the match hot, having won their last four games.

Last Tuesday, Catholic Central earned a 43-32 win over Oak Glen. Given the Crusaders' advantage in MaxPreps' basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 306th in Ohio, while the Golden Bears are ranked 673rd in West Virginia), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Meanwhile, Bellaire came up short against Barnesville on Tuesday and fell 60-48. The Big Reds have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

Bellaire now has a losing record at 9-10. As for Catholic Central, they pushed their record up to 15-3 with the victory, which was their third straight at home.

Catholic Central was able to grind out a solid win over Bellaire in their previous meeting back in December of 2024, winning 65-54. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Bellaire's Raekwon Pettigrew, who went 9 for 19 on his way to 25 points and seven rebounds. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Catholic Central still be able to contain Pettigrew? There's only one way to find out.