The Bucklin Red Aces will be home for the holidays to greet the Pawnee Heights Tigers at 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday. The timing is sure in Bucklin's favor as the squad sits on four straight wins at home (dating back to last season) while Pawnee Heights has been banged up by three consecutive losses on the road dating back to last season.
Last Friday, Bucklin beat Pretty Prairie 59-46.
Bucklin's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Kaden Tilley, who scored 15 points along with three steals and three blocks. That makes it four consecutive games in which Tilley has scored at least 25% of Bucklin's points. Another player making a difference was Kolson Cook, who scored 12 points.
Meanwhile, Pawnee Heights' 15-7 record from last season is now well into the rear view mirror after another tough outing. They took a 61-50 hit to the loss column at the hands of Minneola on Friday.
Pawnee Heights might have lost, but man, Clayton Hammeke was a machine: he scored 25 points along with six rebounds and four steals. Hammeke continues to roll, besting his previous point total in each of the last three games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Davin Hamby, who scored 16 points along with three steals.
The win got Bucklin back to even at 3-3. As for Pawnee Heights, their loss ended a four-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 2-4.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Bucklin have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 28.2 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Pawnee Heights, though, as they've been averaging only 24.2 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Bucklin came up short against Pawnee Heights in their previous meeting back in December of 2022, falling 79-68. Thankfully for Bucklin, Alec Carlson (who scored 36 points along with six rebounds and five assists) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
