Basketball Game Preview: Turkeyfoot Valley Area Rams vs. Blacklick Valley Vikings

Turkeyfoot Valley Area hasn't had much luck against Blacklick Valley recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. Having just played yesterday, the Turkeyfoot Valley Area Rams will jump right back in to play the Blacklick Valley Vikings at 6:00 p.m.

On Wednesday, Turkeyfoot Valley Area was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 57-52 to Northern Garrett. While losing is never fun, the Rams can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 454th in Pennsylvania, while the Huskies are ranked 120th in Maryland).

Meanwhile, Blacklick Valley got the win against Conemaugh Valley on Monday by a conclusive 55-32. The Vikings have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 14 contests by 21 points or more this season.

Turkeyfoot Valley Area better keep an eye on Kristin Szymusiak. She was instrumental in Blacklick Valley's win, going 9-for-20 to rack up 24 points and five steals. Szymusiak's evening made it 12 games in a row in which she has scored at least 17 points. Another player making a difference was Josie Nedrich, who posted ten points along with six rebounds and four steals.

Blacklick Valley smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 20 offensive rebounds. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Conemaugh Valley only pulled down five offensive boards.

Blacklick Valley pushed their record up to 20-2 with the win, which was their seventh straight on the road. They've dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 29.3 points. As for Turkeyfoot Valley Area, their defeat dropped their record down to 12-7.

Turkeyfoot Valley Area was taken down by Blacklick Valley 70-35 when the teams last played back in January. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Szymusiak, who went 11-for-18 en route to 27 points and seven steals. Now that Turkeyfoot Valley Area knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.