The Turkeyfoot Valley Area Rams will take on the Blacklick Valley Vikings at 7:15 p.m. on Monday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Blacklick Valley will be up against a hot Turkeyfoot Valley Area squad: the team just extended their winning streak to three. Turkeyfoot Valley Area breezed by Ferndale to the tune of 71-34 on Friday. Given the Rams' advantage in MaxPreps' Pennsylvania basketball rankings (they are ranked 249th, while the Yellow Jackets are ranked 506th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
| 01/24/25 @ Ferndale | 7 |
| 01/17/25 @ Blacklick Valley | 7 |
| 01/14/25 vs Hyndman Charter School | 9 |
| 01/13/25 @ Westmont Hilltop | 2 |
| 01/09/25 @ Meyersdale | 10 |
Lance Jones and Bryce Nicholson were among the main playmakers for Turkeyfoot Valley Area as the former posted 25 points along with six rebounds and five steals and the latter put up 16 points and seven steals. Nicholson is crushing it when it comes to steals: he's grabbed at least two every time he's taken the court this season. Another player making a difference was Zack Ryan, who scored six points in addition to eight boards and seven assists.
Meanwhile, Blacklick Valley made easy work of Belleville Mennonite on Saturday and carried off a 63-37 win. The game was all but wrapped up at the end of the third, by which point the Vikings had established a 21 point advantage.
Blacklick Valley found their leader in sophomore Eli Sheesley, who dropped a double-double on 22 points and ten rebounds. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Sheesley has scored all season. Greg Schilling was another key player, going 5 for 12 on his way to 15 points.
Blacklick Valley is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last nine matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 9-7 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 57.4 points per game. As for Turkeyfoot Valley Area, their victory bumped their record up to 14-2.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Turkeyfoot Valley Area has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 33.4 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Blacklick Valley struggles in that department as they've been averaging 23.6 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Everything came up roses for Turkeyfoot Valley Area against Blacklick Valley in their previous matchup last Friday, as the team secured a 75-39 win. In that contest, Turkeyfoot Valley Area amassed a halftime lead of 49-21, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Monday.
