The Hughes BIG RED will head out on the road to face off against the Newport Central Catholic Thoroughbreds at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday. Hughes has been getting the ball to fall more lately as they've increased their point totals each of their last three games.
Winning is just a little bit easier when you outrebound your opponent 14 to 7 on the offensive boards, a fact Hughes proved on Tuesday. They took down New Richmond 61-47. Given Hughes' advantage in MaxPreps' Ohio basketball rankings (they are ranked 217th, while New Richmond is ranked 580th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Hughes' win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Elijah Engleman, who scored 16 points along with six rebounds and four steals. Engleman hasn't dropped below two steals for eight straight games. Another player making a difference was Silas Scott, who scored 16 points along with two steals.
Newport Central Catholic suffered their closest defeat yet this season on Tuesday. They fell just short of St. Henry by a score of 60-57. Newport Central Catholic has now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Hughes now has a winning record of 8-7. As for Newport Central Catholic, they have been struggling recently, as they've lost four of their last five contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 6-14 record this season.
Hughes strolled past Newport Central Catholic in their previous matchup back in December of 2022 by a score of 89-74. The rematch might be a little tougher for Hughes since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
