The Ponca Indians's game on Thursday was a tough loss, but they didn't let that memory haunt them on Friday. They walked away with a 41-34 win over Tri County Northeast. That result was just more of the same for these two, as Ponca also won the last time the pair played back in December of 2022.
Leading Ponca to victory were Elsie Keller and Aix Hughes. Keller scored 16 points, while Hughes dropped a double-double on 13 points and ten rebounds. That makes it three consecutive games in which Hughes has scored at least 25% of Ponca's points.
Despite the defeat, Tri County Northeast saw an underclassman step up: Briley Anderson scored 13 points along with eight rebounds. Those 13 points set a new season-high mark for her. Shantel Miller was another key contributor, scoring four points along with five assists and three steals.
Even though they lost, Tri County Northeast were working as a unit and finished the game with 12 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.
Ponca's win was their 11th straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 4-3. They've been dominating during the contests in that stretch too, as they've won by an average of 28 points. As for Tri County Northeast, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-5.
Ponca and Battle Creek will face off at 4:00 p.m. on December 21st without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. Battle Creek will be coming into the matchup with an undefeated record on the line. Tri County Northeast will be staying on the road on Tuesday to face off against Tekamah-Herman on December 19th.
