The Penn Cambria Panthers will head out on the road to face off against the Bedford Bisons at 7:15 p.m. on Monday. Penn Cambria has been dominant on offense recently, as they've racked up an incredible 574 points over their last nine contests.
Penn Cambria posted their closest win yet this season on Wednesday. They skirted past Richland 55-52.
Penn Cambria found their leader in underclassman Caden Gibbons, who dropped a double-double on 19 points and 13 rebounds. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Gibbons has scored all season. Another player making a difference was Carter McDermott, who scored eight points along with nine rebounds and two steals.
Bedford suffered their biggest loss since December 18, 2023 on Wednesday. They had to suffer through a rough 77-48 loss at the hands of Bishop McCort. While losing is never fun, Bedford can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Pennsylvania basketball rankings (they are ranked 539th, while Bishop McCort is ranked 251st).
Bedford's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Tristen Ruffley, who scored 17 points, and AJ Koontz who scored 12 points along with seven rebounds. That's the first time this season that Ruffley scored 15 or more points. The team also got some help courtesy of Jacob Wilson, who scored eight points along with five assists.
Penn Cambria's victory bumped their record up to 6-8. As for Bedford, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-11.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Penn Cambria have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 30.3 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Bedford struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 24.1 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Penn Cambria and Bedford were neck-and-neck when the teams last played back in February of 2023, but Penn Cambria came up empty-handed after a 47-46 defeat. Thankfully for Penn Cambria, Kevin Ressler (who scored 20 points along with seven rebounds and two steals) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
