Valley Center entered their match against Derby on Tuesday without any home losses, but there's a first time for everything. The Valley Center Hornets fell just short of the Derby Panthers by a score of 68-66. While losing is never fun, the Hornets can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Kansas basketball rankings (they are ranked 42nd, while the Panthers are ranked third).
Austin Saner
| 01/07/25 vs Derby | 20 |
| 12/17/24 vs Maize South | 17 |
| 01/03/25 vs Salina Central | 15 |
| 12/20/24 @ South | 11 |
| 12/13/24 @ Andale | 7 |
Loss or not, Valley Center got some senior leadership from Austin Saner and Colby J Newton. Saner went 7 for 11 on his way to 20 points and four steals, while J Newton went 5 of 8 on his way to 13 points and six assists. Those 20 points set a new season-high mark for Saner. The team also got some help courtesy of Bryson Saner, who posted nine points and six boards.
Even though they lost, Valley Center was working as a unit and finished the game with 19 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.
Derby's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Jaxson Malvo, who had ten points and seven boards. Avant Riley was another key player, putting up 12 points along with six assists and six boards.
Valley Center's defeat ended a four-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 5-1. As for Derby, the win keeps them at an undefeated 6-0.
Valley Center didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next game, a 67-28 victory against South on the 10th. As for Derby, they also wasted no time getting back out on the court and have already played their next contest, a 62-58 win against Northwest on the 11th.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
