Basketball Game Preview: Oakley Plainsmen vs. Hill City Ringnecks

The Oakley Plainsmen will face off against the Hill City Ringnecks at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Oakley has nine straight wins, Hill City has 18 straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the court.

Last Tuesday, Oakley made easy work of Wheatland-Grinnell and carried off a 52-26 victory. The Plainsmen have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won six matchups by 20 points or more this season.

Meanwhile, Hill City played a tough contest on Tuesday in which they were outscored in every quarter. They were dealt a 45-16 defeat at the hands of Smith Center. The Ringnecks were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 31-6.

Oakley will have to keep a close watch on Rylie Minium and Allie Keith, a pair of players who had a big impact on Hill City's prior game. Minium went 6 of 15 en route to 15 points and seven rebounds, while Keith posted no points. That was a full 93.8% of Hill City's points, marking the seventh time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points. Mary Anne Christian also deserves some recognition as she scored her first point of the season.

Oakley pushed their record up to 10-3 with the win, which was their fifth straight on the road. Those victories came thanks to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 26.6 points per game. As for Hill City, their loss dropped their record down to 0-11.

Everything came up roses for Oakley against Hill City when the teams last played back in January of 2024, as the team secured a 52-20 victory. Will Oakley repeat their success, or does Hill City have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.