The Deshler Dragons are taking a road trip to face off against the McCool Junction Mustangs at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Deshler will be looking to extend their current eight-game winning streak.
Deshler is headed into the game after thoroughly thrashing Pike Valley: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that the Dragons blew the Panthers out of the water with an 86-33 final score. The Dragons have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won nine contests by 24 points or more this season.
Kaden Kleen
| 01/10/26 vs Pike Valley | 28 |
| 02/14/25 @ Blue Hill | 24 |
| 01/02/26 @ Diller-Odell | 18 |
| 02/08/25 vs Shelton | 18 |
| 12/13/25 vs Southern | 16 |
Kaden Kleen continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, shooting 65% from the field on his way to 28 points along with five assists and three steals. Those 28 points gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Easton Nash, who went 6-for-11 en route to 13 points and six rebounds.
Fans were treated to a battle of the Mustangs on Thursday. McCool Junction really took it to Meridian for the full four quarters, racking up a 68-29 win. McCool Junction hasn't had any issues with Meridian recently, as the game was their eighth consecutive victory against them.
Deshler better focus on containing Carson McDonald and Colby Yates as the pair were huge in McCool Junction's win. McDonald shot 69% from the field to rack up 21 points in addition to six assists and three steals, while Yates went 6-for-10 on his way to 15 points along with six boards and three steals. McDonald's big performance that morning made it three games in a row in which he has scored at least 21 points. Jaysen Fuehrer also deserves some recognition as he posted his first assists of the season.
McCool Junction was working as a unit and finished the game with 20 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Meridian only racked up six.
Deshler's record is now 10-1. As for McCool Junction, their record now sits at 8-4.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Deshler has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 30.4 rebounds per game. However, it's not like McCool Junction struggles in that department as they've been averaging 28.2 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Deshler lost to McCool Junction on the road by a decisive 68-51 margin in their previous matchup back in January of 2025. Can the Dragons avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
