The Plainfield Quakers will face off against the Martinsville Artesians at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.
Plainfield will face Martinsville after dropping another heartbreaker against Carmel on Saturday, which marked the second time in a row the team's come within 3.1 of beating them. Plainfield came up short against Carmel, falling 52-30. Having soared to a lofty 60 points in the game before, the Quakers couldn't push the score so high this time.
Despite their defeat, Plainfield saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Noah Smith, who posted seven points, was perhaps the best of all. Another player making a difference was Colton East, who had six points.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Martinsville, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Saturday. They came out on top against Indian Creek by a score of 78-71 on Tuesday. The score was all tied up 31-31 at the break, but the Artesians were the better team in the second half.
Plainfield better keep an eye on Grady Gardner. He was instrumental in Martinsville's win, going 11 of 22 on his way to 30 points in addition to six boards and three steals. That makes it three consecutive games in which Gardner has scored at least a third of Martinsville's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Hunter Stroud, who dropped a double-double on 18 points and 11 rebounds.
Martinsville's victory ended an eight-game drought at home dating back to last season and bumped them up to 1-2. As for Plainfield, their loss ended a four-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 2-2.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Plainfield has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 20.8 boards per game. However, it's not like Martinsville struggles in that department as they've been averaging 29.3 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Everything went Plainfield's way against Martinsville when the teams last played back in December of 2023, as Plainfield made off with a 75-52 win. Will Plainfield repeat their success, or does Martinsville have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
