The Arapahoe Warriors will head out on the road to face off against the Northern Valley Huskies on Tuesday. Northern Valley took a loss in their last game and will be looking to turn the tables on Arapahoe, who comes in off a win.
Even though Arapahoe has not done well against Southwest recently (they were 1-8 in their previous nine matchups), they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. Arapahoe pulled ahead with a 36-35 photo finish over Southwest.
Arapahoe's success was spearheaded by the efforts of Clara Hilker, who scored seven points, and Berkley Warner, who scored 19 points along with nine steals and eight rebounds. That makes it three consecutive games in which Warner has scored at least 25% of Arapahoe's points.
Meanwhile, it was a hard-fought contest, but Northern Valley had to settle for a 35-33 loss against Thunder Ridge on Friday. While losing is never fun, Northern Valley can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Kansas basketball rankings (they are ranked 281st, while Thunder Ridge is ranked 94th).
Despite their loss, Northern Valley saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Delaney Sides, who scored eight points along with 12 rebounds, was perhaps the best of all. Those 12 rebounds set a new season-high mark for her. Austyn Cox was another key contributor, scoring seven points along with ten rebounds.
Arapahoe's win bumped their record up to 3-4. As for Northern Valley, their loss dropped their record down to 1-5.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Arapahoe have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 30.7 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Northern Valley, though, as they've been averaging only 31.7 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Everything went Arapahoe's way against Northern Valley when the teams last played back in December of 2022 as Arapahoe made off with a 50-28 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Arapahoe since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
