Creighton Prep is 1-9 against Bellevue West since February of 2019 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Thursday. The Creighton Prep Junior Jays will head out on the road to square off against the Bellevue West Thunderbirds. Both teams are coming into the match red-hot, with Creighton Prep sitting on five straight victories and Bellevue West on 11.
In what's become a running theme this season, Creighton Prep gave their fans yet another huge win on Saturday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Buena Vista 66-26 on the road. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest win Creighton Prep has posted yet this season.
Dillon Claussen continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, dropping a double-double on 20 points and ten rebounds. Claussen is absolutely dominating the rebound category: he's posted at least eight every time he's taken the court this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Trinell Parker, who scored 12 points.
Meanwhile, even though Bryan scored an imposing 67 points on Saturday, Bellevue West still came out on top. Bellevue West took their contest against Bryan 74-67. Given Bellevue West's advantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska basketball rankings (they are ranked first, while Bryan is ranked 51st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Bellevue West's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Steven Poulicek, who scored 18 points along with eight rebounds. That's the first time this season that Poulicek pulled down eight or more rebounds. Another player making a difference was Jaden Jackson, who scored 12 points along with nine assists.
Creighton Prep pushed their record up to 11-2 with that victory, which was their fifth straight on the road. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 66.8 points per game. As for Bellevue West, their win bumped their record up to 13-1.
Thursday's contest is shaping up to be a scrappy match: Creighton Prep have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 32.5 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Bellevue West, though, as they've been averaging only 35.1 rebounds per game. Given Creighton Prep's sizeable advantage in that area, Bellevue West will need to find a way to close that gap.
Creighton Prep was dealt a bruising 70-42 defeat at the hands of Bellevue West when the teams last played back in February of 2023. The game was all but decided by halftime, at which point Creighton Prep was down 36-14.
