Basketball Game Preview: Niobrara/Verdigre Cougars vs. Crofton Warriors

The Niobrara/Verdigre Cougars and the Crofton Warriors will compete for holiday cheer at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. The two teams have had a bumpy ride up to this point with seven consecutive losses dating back to last season for Niobrara/Verdigre and four for Crofton.

It was a proper cat-fight when Niobrara/Verdigre took on Hartington-Newcastle on Tuesday. Niobrara/Verdigre might have been a little too into the holiday spirit, gifting Hartington-Newcastle an easy 50-25 victory. The Cougars were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 30-9.

Meanwhile, Crofton played a tough match on Tuesday in which they were outscored in every quarter. They came up short against Cedar Catholic, falling 74-52. The Warriors were down 60-38 at the end of the third quarter, which was just too much to recover from.

Niobrara/Verdigre will have to contain Trevor Allen as he made an impact in Crofton's last game. He posted 19 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Braxston Foxhoven, who put up 11 points.

Crofton's defeat dropped their record down to 1-4. As for Niobrara/Verdigre, their loss dropped their record down to 0-6.

Niobrara/Verdigre was dealt a bruising 59-17 defeat at the hands of Crofton when the teams last played back in December of 2023. That game was all but decided by halftime, at which point Niobrara/Verdigre was down 40-10.