The Valley Mills Eagles will look to defend their home court on Friday against the Italy Gladiators at 6:00 p.m. Valley Mills has been getting the ball to fall more lately as they've increased their point totals each of their last three games.
Valley Mills suffered their biggest defeat yet this season on Tuesday. They were outmatched by Hamilton on the road and fell 86-45. While losing is never fun, Valley Mills can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Texas basketball rankings (they are ranked 906th, while Hamilton is ranked 327th).
Meanwhile, Italy scored the most points they've had all season to find success on Tuesday. They walked away with a 54-46 victory over Itasca. The victory was just what Italy needed coming off of a 88-35 loss in their prior match.
Italy's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Camdyn Owen, who scored 11 points along with five rebounds. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Owen has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of Hannah Scott, who scored 13 points along with seven rebounds and three blocks.
Valley Mills has not been sharp recently, as they've lost seven of their last nine games, which put a noticeable dent in their 12-11 record this season. As for Italy, their win bumped their record up to 9-13.
Everything came up roses for Valley Mills against Italy in their previous matchup back in February of 2023 as the squad secured a 58-29 victory. Will Valley Mills repeat their success, or does Italy have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
