Basketball Game Preview: Father Judge Crusaders vs. Hazleton Area Cougars

The Father Judge Crusaders will square off against the Hazleton Area Cougars on Saturday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.

Father Judge is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Wednesday. They took down Spring-Ford 55-41. Given the Crusaders' advantage in MaxPreps' Pennsylvania basketball rankings (they are ranked first, while the Rams are ranked 58th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Meanwhile, Hazleton Area won against Northampton on Saturday with 60 points and they decided to stick to that point total again on Wednesday. Hazleton Area secured a 60-54 W over Conestoga. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Cougars.

Father Judge has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won seven of their last eight contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 21-7 record this season. Hazleton Area's victory bumped their record up to 15-12.