The Deshler Dragons will head out on the road to take on the Shelton Bulldogs at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Deshler comes in on four and the Bulldogs on three.
Last Tuesday, Deshler didn't have too much breathing room in their game against the Blue Devils, but they still walked away with a 49-45 win.
Deshler's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Cameron Harding, who scored 17 points along with two steals. Brent Buescher was another key contributor, scoring 11 points along with five rebounds.
Meanwhile, Shelton put the finishing touches on their 14th blowout victory of the season on Tuesday. They really took it to Blue Hill for the full four quarters, racking up a 67-31 win at home. Given Shelton's advantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska basketball rankings (they are ranked 47th, while the Bobcats are ranked 239th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Riley Bombeck was his usual excellent self, scoring 19 points along with eight assists and eight rebounds. He is on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed two or more in the last nine games he's played. Another player making a difference was Ashton Simmons, who scored 17 points.
Deshler's win bumped their record up to 8-6. As for Shelton, they pushed their record up to 16-1 with that win, which was their third straight at home.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Deshler have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 24 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Shelton struggles in that department as they've been averaging 30 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Deshler was taken down by the Bulldogs 62-19 in their previous meeting back in January. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Bombeck, who scored 20 points along with eight assists and three steals. Now that Deshler knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
