The Hardin County Cougars will look to take advantage of their home-court for the first time this season as they take on the Steeleville Warriors at 5:30 p.m. on Monday. Steeleville took a loss in their last game and will be looking to turn the tables on Hardin County, who comes in off a win.
Having struggled with 22 losses in a row dating back to last season, Hardin County finally turned things around against Joppa-Maple Grove on Saturday. They took down the Rangers 56-40. Considering the Cougars' offense had been struggling lately, the high-scoring outing was a much-needed turnaround.
Hardin County found their leader in freshman Benna Williams, who went 15 for 25 en route to 42 points plus five rebounds. That makes it three consecutive games in which Williams has scored at least a third of Hardin County's points. Another player making a difference was Mady Davis, who had eight points.
Meanwhile, Steeleville was not able to break out of their rough patch on Tuesday as the team picked up their eighth straight defeat dating back to last season. They took a hard 51-37 fall against Red Bud. That makes it the first time this season the Warriors have let down their home crowd.
Despite the loss, Steeleville saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Rylan Reiss had 27 points along with three steals. What's more, Reiss also racked up two threes, the most she's had since back in January. Lily Hepp was another key player, earning five points along with six rebounds and three steals.
Steeleville's defeat dropped their record down to 0-5. As for Hardin County, their victory (their first of the season) made their record 1-2.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Hardin County has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 20 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Steeleville struggles in that department as they've been averaging 32.4. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Hardin County couldn't quite finish off Steeleville in their previous matchup back in December of 2022 and fell 42-39. Can Hardin County avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
