The Deerfield Spartans will head out on the road to square off against the Pawnee Heights Tigers at 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both teams took a loss in their last game, so they'll have plenty of motivation to get the 'W'.
Last Friday, Deerfield had to suffer through a rough 75-46 loss at the hands of the Lobos.
Despite the loss, Deerfield saw an underclassman step up: Colten Musil scored 22 points along with three steals. Musil has been hot recently, having posted 15 or more points the last four times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Michael Lira, who scored six points along with five rebounds and three steals.
Meanwhile, Pawnee Heights was beaten by the Rebels 90-27 on Friday. While losing is never fun, Pawnee Heights can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Kansas basketball rankings (they are ranked 323rd, while the Rebels are ranked 25th).
The losing side was boosted by Davin Hamby, who scored 14 points along with six rebounds.
Deerfield's loss dropped their record down to 6-9. As for Pawnee Heights, they have been struggling recently as they've lost eight of their last nine matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 3-11 record this season.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Deerfield have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 21.4 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Pawnee Heights struggles in that department as they've been averaging 24.7 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Deerfield suffered a grim 58-34 defeat to the Tigers in their previous meeting back in February of 2023. Can Deerfield avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
