The New Prairie Cougars's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Friday after their fifth straight loss. They were outmatched by South Bend St. Joseph on the road and fell 69-32. The defeat unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for New Prairie in their matchups with South Bend St. Joseph: they've now lost four in a row.
When it comes to explaining why New Prairie lost, one person who can't be blamed is Devan Kalicki. Despite the final result, he scored 16 points.
New Prairie struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only three offensive rebounds. That's the fewest offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
It was another big night for Chase Konieczny, who went 6 for 9 from beyond the arc en route to 32 points and 3 assists for South Bend St. Joseph. Konieczny is on a roll when it comes to points, as he's now scored 15 or more in the last four games he's played. Another player making a difference was Nick Shrewsberry, who scored 13 points along with five rebounds and two steals.
New Prairie has traveled a rocky road recently, as they've lost nine of their last ten matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 2-13 record this season. As for South Bend St. Joseph, the win (which was their third in a row) raised their record to 9-7.
New Prairie won't have much time to rest: their next matchup is against South Central at 6:30 p.m. on January 27th. The matchup should be an exciting one, as these teams are ranked near one another in Indiana (South Central is ranked 389th, while New Prairie is ranked 365th). As for South Bend St. Joseph, they will head out on the road to take on South Bend Clay at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. That game will pit two of the most dominant guards against one another: Tyrese Jones and Konieczny.
