The Fort Collins Lambkins will head out on the road to square off against the Prairie View Thunderhawks at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. One thing working in Fort Collins' favor is that they have posted big point totals in their last seven matchups.
Fort Collins scored the most points they've had all season to find success on Friday. They took down Broomfield 90-71. The victory was all the more spectacular given Fort Collins' disadvantage in MaxPreps' Colorado basketball rankings (they are ranked 105th, while Broomfield is ranked 35th).
It was another big night for Jayce King, who scored 40 points along with five rebounds and two steals. That makes it ten consecutive games in which he has scored at least a third of Fort Collins' points. The team also got some help courtesy of Marcus Burkett, who scored 13 points along with five assists and three steals.
Prairie View suffered their biggest defeat since December 6, 2023 on Friday. They suffered a rough 70-46 loss at the hands of Northglenn. Prairie View was in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 42-19.
Prairie View's defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of Randall Rogos, who scored 19 points along with three steals and three blocks, and Eric Allee who scored six points. That's the first time this season that Rogos posted two or more blocks.
The win got Fort Collins back to even at 5-5. As for Prairie View, they bumped their record down to 4-7 with that defeat, which was their fifth straight on the road.
Friday's game is shaping up to be a scrappy matchup: Fort Collins have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 28 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Prairie View, though, as they've been averaging only 28.5 rebounds per game. Given Fort Collins' sizeable advantage in that area, Prairie View will need to find a way to close that gap.
Fort Collins took their victory against Prairie View when the teams last played back in January of 2023 by a conclusive 70-46. The rematch might be a little tougher for Fort Collins since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
