Basketball Recap: Willmar Comes Up Short

Willmar lost against Sauk Rapids-Rice back in December of 2024 and unfortunately they wound up with the same result on Tuesday. The Willmar Cardinals were beaten by the Sauk Rapids-Rice Storm 87-44. While losing is never fun, the Cardinals can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Minnesota basketball rankings (they are ranked 254th, while the Storm are ranked 28th).

Willmar's loss was their 19th straight on the road dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 5-10. As for Sauk Rapids-Rice, they have been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five contests, which provided a nice bump to their 12-4 record this season.

Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. A feisty cat fight is on tap when the Willmar Cardinals face off against the Hutchinson Tigers at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday. As for Sauk Rapids-Rice, they will take on Alexandria at 5:45 p.m. on Friday. Sauk Rapids-Rice knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past 16 matches -- so hopefully Alexandria likes a good challenge.