Basketball Game Preview: Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard] Bobcats vs. Hartington-Newcastle Wildcats

The Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard] Bobcats and the Hartington-Newcastle Wildcats will face off at 8:00 p.m. on Friday without much rest, having both just played. Given that the two teams suffered a loss in their last games, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this game.

Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard] is coming home looking for redemption after taking a loss in their road opener. They fell 51-40 to Neligh-Oakdale on Thursday.

Ryan Rifer put forth a good effort for the losing side as he posted 12 points.

Meanwhile, Hartington-Newcastle unfortunately couldn't capitalize on their home-court advantage in their season opener. They lost 63-42 to Ponca on Thursday. The defeat continues a trend for the Wildcats in their meetings with the Indians: they've now lost four in a row.

Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard] will need to focus on slowing down Austin Sudbeck, one of several Hartington-Newcastle players who made an impact when they last played. He scored ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Will Feilmeier, who had eight points.

Everything came up roses for Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard] against Hartington-Newcastle when the teams last played back in December of 2024, as the squad secured a 64-35 victory. In that contest, the Bobcats amassed a halftime lead of 39-15, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Friday.