The Huntington North Vikings will head out to take on the Hamilton Heights Huskies at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Huntington North is headed into the game after thoroughly thrashing Fort Wayne South Side: they outscored them in every quarter. The Vikings blew past the Archers 44-20 on Tuesday. The Vikings haven't had any issues with the Archers recently, as the game was their fifth consecutive victory against them.
Huntington North relied on the efforts of Luci Reich, who almost dropped a double-double with 21 points and nine rebounds, and Riley Wilson, who posted seven points along with seven steals and five assists. Addison Winter was another key player, putting up three points.
They weren't the only ones working in the assist department: Huntington North was working as a unit and finished the game with ten assists. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their assist total in three consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, the third road matchup was the charm for Hamilton Heights, as they earned their first away win of the season. They came out on top against Danville by a score of 66-55 on Saturday.
Hamilton Heights found their leader in freshman Bayleigh Eisele, who went 8-for-9 en route to 19 points in addition to six boards and five assists. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Eisele has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of Riley Suarez, who shot 41% from the field to rack up 22 points and seven rebounds.
Hamilton Heights picked up their first road victory, bumping their record up to 4-2. As for Huntington North, their win (their first of the season) made their record 1-4.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Huntington North has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 27.2 boards per game. However, it's not like Hamilton Heights struggles in that department as they've been averaging 26.5 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Everything came up roses for Huntington North against Hamilton Heights when the teams last played back in November of 2024, as the squad secured a 57-20 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Vikings since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
