Basketball Game Preview: Apple Valley Eagles vs. Shakopee Sabers

Apple Valley hasn't had much luck against Shakopee recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Apple Valley Eagles will be playing in front of their home fans against the Shakopee Sabers at 7:00 p.m. Apple Valley knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past 21 matches -- so hopefully Shakopee likes a good challenge.

Apple Valley took a 21-point defeat the last time they faced off against Rosemount, but this time they managed to keep it close and that made all the difference. Apple Valley sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 67-64 victory over Rosemount on Tuesday. Given the Eagles' advantage in MaxPreps' Minnesota basketball rankings (they are ranked seventh, while the Irish are ranked 114th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Meanwhile, Shakopee had already won seven in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 24.6 points) and they went ahead and made it eight on Tuesday. They blew past the Lightning 72-36. The Sabers have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won nine contests by 22 points or more this season.

Shakopee's win was their fifth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 15-6. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 82.4 points over those games. As for Apple Valley, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won 14 of their last 15 games, which provided a nice bump to their 19-2 record this season.

Apple Valley suffered a grim 83-60 defeat to Shakopee when the teams last played back in February of 2024. Can Apple Valley avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.