The Andover Trojans had already won seven in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 17.6 points), and they went ahead and made it eight on Tuesday. They blew past Arkansas City 66-37 on the road. Given Andover's advantage in MaxPreps' Kansas basketball rankings (they are ranked 33rd, while Arkansas City is ranked 223rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Blake Rucker was his usual excellent self, scoring 18 points. He has been hot recently, having posted 18 or more points the last four times he's played. Another player making a difference was Joshua Kim, who scored eight points along with six assists and two blocks.
When it comes to explaining why Arkansas City lost, one person who can't be blamed is Aidan Brantley. Despite the final result, he scored 20 points. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Brantley has scored all season. Kamari Jennings was another key contributor, scoring eight points along with two steals.
Andover pushed their record up to 12-3 with that win, which was their seventh straight on the road. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 65.6 points per game. As for Arkansas City, they have been struggling recently as they've lost seven of their last eight matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 4-11 record this season.
Andover will head out on the road to square off against Goddard at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Andover has been dominant on offense recently, as they've racked up an incredible 553 points over their last eight games. As for Arkansas City, they will be playing in front of their home fans against Valley Center at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both teams have had a bumpy ride up to this point with five consecutive losses for Valley Center and four for Arkansas City.
