Basketball Game Preview: North Callaway Thunderbirds vs. Elsberry Indians

North Callaway hasn't had much luck against Elsberry recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The North Callaway Thunderbirds will venture away from home to square off against the Elsberry Indians at 6:00 p.m. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Last Tuesday, North Callaway didn't have too much trouble with Prairie Home as they won 59-43. The Thunderbirds pushed the score to 52-29 by the end of the third, a deficit the Panthers cut but never quite recovered from.

Natalie Shryock had an outrageously good game as she went 7 for 9 from beyond the arc en route to 27 points. Lakyn Hartley was another key player, putting up ten points and four steals.

Meanwhile, everything went Elsberry's way against Wellsville-Middletown on Tuesday as Elsberry made off with a 46-23 win. Given the Indians' advantage in MaxPreps' Missouri basketball rankings (they are ranked 223rd, while the Tigers are ranked 457th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Elsberry's victory ended a three-game drought on the road and puts them at 8-9. As for North Callaway, they now have a winning record of 11-10.

North Callaway didn't have too much breathing room in their game against Elsberry when the teams last played back in February of 2024, but they still walked away with a 54-49 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for North Callaway since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.