The Beloit Trojans will be home for the holidays to greet the Phillipsburg Panthers on Tuesday. Beloit will be looking to keep their six-game home win streak (dating back to last season) alive.
On Friday, Beloit earned a 56-45 victory over Ellsworth.
Beloit's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Jackson Cheney led the charge by scoring 15 points. That's the first time this season that Cheney scored 15 or more points. Bryce Beisner was another key contributor, scoring 15 points along with six rebounds.
Meanwhile, winning is just a little bit easier when you outrebound your opponent 14 to 4 on the offensive boards, a fact Phillipsburg proved on Tuesday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 50-47 win over Ellis. Given Phillipsburg's advantage in MaxPreps' Kansas basketball rankings (they are ranked 115th, while Ellis is ranked 283rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
It was another big night for Caden Seems, who scored 18 points along with seven rebounds. Those 18 points set a new season-high mark for him. Another player making a difference was Trace Hanchett, who scored five points.
Beloit's win bumped their record up to 5-0. As for Phillipsburg, their victory ended a five-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 4-1.
Keep an eye on the arc in Tuesday's match: Beloit have made nailing deep shots look easy this year this season, having only averaged 6 threes per game. It's a different story for Phillipsburg, though, as they've been averaging only 3 threes per game. Given Beloit's sizeable advantage in that area, Phillipsburg will need to find a way to close that gap.
Everything came up roses for Beloit against Phillipsburg in their previous matchup back in January as the team secured a 82-50 win. Does Beloit have another victory up their sleeve, or will Phillipsburg turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
