The Boone Grove Wolves will square off against the South Central Satellites at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.
Boone Grove will bounce into Friday's match after beating Morgan Township, who they had gone 1-8 against in their nine prior meetings. Boone Grove narrowly escaped with a victory as the squad sidled past Morgan Township 58-56. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Wolves have posted since February 13, 2024.
Boone Grove's win on Friday was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Javy Carrera, who almost dropped a double-double on 16 points and nine rebounds. Another player making a difference was Mark Rowland, who went 6 of 8 en route to 15 points.
Meanwhile, South Central didn't have quite enough to beat Hebron on Friday and fell 61-58. The defeat continues a trend for the Satellites in their matchups with the Hawks: they've now lost six in a row.
Boone Grove will need focus on slowing down Clayten Strauch, one of several South Central players who made an impact when they last played. He went 6 of 12 on his way to 15 points along with seven rebounds and four steals. Strauch is on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed three or more in the last three games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Jay Huerta, who posted 16 points and five rebounds.
Even though they lost, South Central smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive rebounds in four consecutive contests.
Boone Grove's victory bumped their record up to 4-6. As for South Central, they now have a losing record at 5-6.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Boone Grove has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 24.3 boards per game. However, it's not like South Central struggles in that department as they've been averaging 29.9 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Boone Grove took their win against South Central in their previous matchup back in January of 2024 by a conclusive 55-32. The rematch might be a little tougher for Boone Grove since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
