Basketball Game Preview: Platteview Trojans vs. Malcolm Clippers

The Platteview Trojans will take on the Malcolm Clippers in a holiday battle at at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. Both are strolling into their matches after big wins in their previous games.

Malcolm is hoping to do what Beatrice couldn't on Tuesday: put an end to Platteview's winning streak, which now stands at four games. Platteview put the hurt on Beatrice with a sharp 65-45 win. The Trojans pushed the score to 49-27 by the end of the third, a deficit the Orangemen cut but never quite recovered from.

Platteview's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Tarin Riley led the charge by going 7 for 10 on his way to 20 points and seven rebounds. The dominant performance gave Riley a new career-high in points. The team also got some help courtesy of Jaxon Adams, who went 5 of 9 on his way to 12 points in addition to five assists and three steals.

Platteview smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 12 offensive boards. That's the most offensive boards they've managed all season.

Meanwhile, Malcolm won against North Bend Central last Tuesday with 68 points and they decided to stick to that point total again on Tuesday. Everything went Malcolm's way against Raymond Central as Malcolm made off with a 68-44 victory. With that win, the Clippers brought their scoring average up to 51.8 points per game.

Platteview better keep an eye on Carson Frank. He was instrumental in Malcolm's win, putting up 29 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Preston Kucera, who posted 15 points.

Platteview's victory was their sixth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 5-1. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 59.7 points per game. As for Malcolm, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 3-1.

Platteview came up short against Malcolm in their previous meeting back in January, falling 46-42. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Frank, who put up 23 points. Now that Platteview knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.