The Pawnee Heights Tigers will be playing at home against the Deerfield Spartans at 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Having both just faced considerable losses, both teams are looking to turn things around.
Last Friday, Pawnee Heights had to suffer through a rough 90-27 loss at the hands of the Rebels. While losing is never fun, Pawnee Heights can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Kansas basketball rankings (they are ranked 323rd, while the Rebels are ranked 25th).
Davin Hamby put forth a good effort for the losing side as he scored 14 points along with six rebounds.
Meanwhile, it's never fun to lose, and it's even less fun to lose 75-46, which was the final score in Deerfield's tilt against the Lobos on Friday.
Despite the defeat, Deerfield saw an underclassman step up: Colten Musil scored 22 points along with three steals. Musil is on a roll when it comes to points, as he's now scored 15 or more in the last four games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Michael Lira, who scored six points along with five rebounds and three steals.
Pawnee Heights' defeat was their sixth straight on the road dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 3-11. As for Deerfield, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-9.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Pawnee Heights have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 24.7 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Deerfield struggles in that department as they've been averaging 21.4 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Pawnee Heights took their win against the Spartans when the teams last played back in February of 2023 by a conclusive 58-34. Will Pawnee Heights repeat their success, or do the Spartans have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.