Howland has enjoyed a four-game homestand but will soon have to dust off their road jerseys. They will face off against the McKinley Red Dragons at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Hopefully Howland is not getting complacent considering they own a much higher rank in Ohio (they are ranked 250th, while McKinley is ranked 717th).
Last Friday, Howland beat South Range 53-43.
Alex Henry continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, scoring 22 points along with seven assists and three blocks. Another player making a difference was Anthony Chieffo, who scored ten points along with five rebounds.
Meanwhile, McKinley struggled with assists on Tuesday (Newton Falls had 18 more) and sadly the final score reflected it. McKinley was the victim of a rough 61-41 defeat at the hands of Newton Falls. The defeat unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for McKinley in their matchups with Newton Falls: they've now lost four in a row.
Yaunsene Blackmon put forth a good effort for the losing side as he scored 19 points along with six rebounds and two steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points he has scored all season. Anthony Budak was another key contributor, scoring five points along with five rebounds.
McKinley struggled to work together and finished the game with only four assists. That's the fewest assists they've managed all season.
Howland is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four matchups, which provided a massive bump to their 10-10 record this season. As for McKinley, they dropped their record down to 5-15 with that defeat, which was their third straight on the road.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Howland have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 27.6 rebounds per game. However, it's not like McKinley struggles in that department as they've been averaging 24 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Howland took their win against McKinley in their previous matchup back in February of 2023 by a conclusive 71-48. The rematch might be a little tougher for Howland since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
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