Basketball Game Preview: Mt. Vernon Yellowjackets vs. Licking Valley Panthers

The Mt. Vernon Yellowjackets will face off against the Licking Valley Panthers at 1:45 p.m. on Saturday. Licking Valley took a loss in their last contest and will be looking to turn the tables on Mt. Vernon, who comes in off a win.

Mt. Vernon is headed into the match after thoroughly thrashing Heath: they outscored them in every quarter. Mt. Vernon took down Heath 45-28 on Wednesday. Given the Yellowjackets' advantage in MaxPreps' Ohio basketball rankings (they are ranked 225th, while the Bulldogs are ranked 554th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Meanwhile, Licking Valley ended up a good deal behind Newark Catholic on Thursday and lost 55-39. The Panthers have struggled against the Green Wave recently, as the game was their third consecutive lost matchup.

Mt. Vernon pushed their record up to 11-4 with the victory, which was their seventh straight at home. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 50.4 points per game. As for Licking Valley, their loss dropped their record down to 3-14.

Mt. Vernon didn't have too much breathing room in their game against Licking Valley in their previous meeting back in December of 2024, but they still walked away with a 42-38 win. Will Mt. Vernon repeat their success, or does Licking Valley have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.