Omaha North is 0-3 against Lincoln Southwest since January of 2015 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Thursday. The two teams will face off at 5:30 p.m. on December 14th without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. The timing isn't great for Omaha North: they have been struggling with four straight losses at home dating back to last season, while Lincoln Southwest has snatched up eight consecutive wins on the road dating back to last season.
Omaha North pushed their score all the way to 60 on Saturday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They took a 66-60 hit to the loss column at the hands of Westview. Even though they lost, Omaha North's still made a splash on offense and bumped their average scoring up to 52 points per game (they're now ranked -1th in scoring overall).
Despite the defeat, Omaha North saw an underclassman step up: Alaeya Randle scored 23 points along with five rebounds and three blocks. That's the first time this season that Randle posted two or more blocks. Akazja Foster was another key contributor, scoring 14 points.
Meanwhile, even if it wasn't a dominant performance, Lincoln Southwest beat Millard South 47-41 on Saturday. Given Lincoln Southwest's advantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska basketball rankings (they are ranked 36th, while Millard South is ranked 229th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
It was another big night for Kennadi Williams, who scored 18 points. That makes it three consecutive games in which she has scored at least 25% of Lincoln Southwest's points. Another player making a difference was Hayden Rathe, who scored seven points along with six rebounds.
Omaha North's defeat dropped their record down to 1-3. As for Lincoln Southwest, their victory bumped their record up to 4-0.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Omaha North have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 26.2 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Lincoln Southwest struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 29.5 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Omaha North was taken down by Lincoln Southwest 78-41 in their previous matchup back in December of 2022. Will Omaha North have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
