Basketball Game Preview: Rawlins County Buffaloes vs. Quinter Bulldogs

Rawlins County and Quinter are an even 5-5 against one another since February of 2020, but not for long. Both will face off at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday without much rest having both just played. Both teams are still undefeated after three-games, but that won't be the case come Saturday.

Rawlins County will head into Friday's matchup hoping to keep the good times rolling: they proved they can win big on Tuesday (they won by 47) and on Friday they proved they can win the close ones too. They had just enough and edged Oakley out 44-42.

Rawlins County's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Kayte Shively led the charge by dropping a double-double on 11 points and 17 boards. The dominant performance gave Shively a new career-high in rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Tayten Dewey, who went 5 of 11 on her way to 12 points and six rebounds.

Meanwhile, even if it wasn't a dominant performance, Quinter beat Dighton 58-53 on Friday.

Quinter's win came from a few key players Rawlins County will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Braelyn Blackwill, who posted 16 points along with seven boards and five steals. Blackwill is crushing it when it comes to steals: she's grabbed at least four every time she's taken the court this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Mia Briggs, who went 6 of 12 on her way to 13 points.

Quinter smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive rebounds in three consecutive games.

Quinter's victory was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 3-0. As for Rawlins County, their win bumped their record up to an identical 3-0.

Rawlins County was able to grind out a solid victory over Quinter when the teams last played back in March, winning 48-37. Will Rawlins County repeat their success, or does Quinter have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.