The Thayer Central Titans will take on the Centennial Broncos at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. Given that the two teams suffered a loss in their last games, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this game.
The home team had won the previous five meetings between Thayer Central and Sutton, and Sutton kept the tradition alive. The Titans lost to the Mustangs on the road by a 45-31 margin on Monday.
Thayer Central's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Gavin Kroll, who posted nine points, and Murphy Sudbeck, who earned eight points and three steals. Another player making a difference was Brady Degenhardt, who scored five points and six rebounds.
Meanwhile, Centennial was not able to break out of their rough patch on Monday as the team picked up their 16th straight defeat. They had to suffer through a 69-29 loss at the hands of Milford. While losing is never fun, the Broncos can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska basketball rankings (they are ranked 258th, while the Eagles are ranked 73rd).
Thayer Central will need to focus on slowing down Owen Naber, one of several Centennial players who made an impact when they last played. He put up nine points. Jack Luebbe also deserves some recognition as he posted his first assist of the season.
Thayer Central's loss dropped their record down to 3-15. As for Centennial, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-16.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Thayer Central has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 23.9 boards per game. However, it's not like Centennial struggles in that department as they've been averaging 21.3 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Thayer Central didn't have too much breathing room in their matchup against Centennial in their previous meeting on Friday, but they still walked away with a 45-39 victory. Do the Titans have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Broncos turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
