The Hayes Pacers will challenge the Pickerington North Panthers at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. One thing working in Hayes' favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last three matches.
If Hayes beats Pickerington North with 70 points on Tuesday, it's going to be the squad's new lucky number: they've won their past two games with that exact score. Hayes took down Big Walnut 70-53 on Friday. Given the Pacers' advantage in MaxPreps' Ohio basketball rankings (they are ranked 23rd, while the Golden Eagles are ranked 113th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Meanwhile, Pickerington North fought the good fight in their overtime contest against Bishop Watterson on Friday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They opened the new year with a less-than-successful 50-43 defeat to the Eagles. The match marked the Panthers' lowest-scoring game so far this season.
Hayes will need focus on slowing down Arness Lawson, one of several Pickerington North players who made an impact when they last played. He went 5 for 10 on his way to 17 points and eight rebounds. The contest was Lawson's sixth in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Favor McFadden, who went 5 of 11 on his way to 15 points and seven rebounds.
Even though they lost, Pickerington North smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in 19 consecutive matchups dating back to last season.
Pickerington North's loss ended a four-game streak of away wins and brought them to 7-1. As for Hayes, their victory was their 11th straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 7-2.
Hayes didn't have too much breathing room in their game against Pickerington North when the teams last played back in March of 2023, but they still walked away with a 44-40 win. Does Hayes have another victory up their sleeve, or will Pickerington North turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
