Basketball Game Preview: Hamilton Cardinals vs. Pittsfield Saukees

The Hamilton Cardinals and the Pittsfield Saukees will round out the year against one another at at 7:00 p.m. on Monday. Both teams are coming into the match red-hot, with Hamilton sitting on five straight victories and Pittsfield on 14.

Hamilton's tournament run continued when they took on Carrollton on Saturday. Hamilton pulled ahead with a 48-47 photo finish over Carrollton.

Jadyn Climer and Grace Grothaus were among the main playmakers for Hamilton as the former dropped a double-double on 16 points and 15 rebounds and the latter went 6 of 10 on her way to 15 points and three steals. Climer is on a roll when it comes to rebounds, as she's now pulled down nine or more in the last five games she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Dettriona Church, who posted eight points.

Hamilton smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive rebounds. That's the most offensive boards they've managed all season.

Meanwhile, Pittsfield was able to grind out a solid win over Brown County on Saturday, taking the game 60-53. Given the Saukees' advantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 21st, while the Hornets are ranked 118th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Hamilton is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last nine games, which provided a nice bump to their 12-5 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 54.4 points per game. As for Pittsfield, their victory bumped their record up to 14-0.