Basketball Game Preview: Tuscarawas Central Catholic Saints vs. Newcomerstown Trojans

Tuscarawas Central Catholic is 9-1 against Newcomerstown since January of 2017 and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Tuesday. The Tuscarawas Central Catholic Saints will square off against the Newcomerstown Trojans at 7:00 p.m. Both have had a bumpy ride up to this point with six consecutive losses for Tuscarawas Central Catholic and four for Newcomerstown.

Last Friday, Tuscarawas Central Catholic ended up a good deal behind Malvern and lost 65-46. While losing is never fun, the Saints can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Ohio basketball rankings (they are ranked 759th, while the Hornets are ranked 199th).

Despite the loss, Tuscarawas Central Catholic saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Ethan Rothrock posted nine points in addition to eight boards and four blocks. The dominant performance also gave Rothrock a new career-high in assists (three). Another player making a difference was Nate Wright, who had five points in addition to six boards and six steals.

Even though they lost, Tuscarawas Central Catholic smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 17 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 13 offensive rebounds in three consecutive games.

Meanwhile, Newcomerstown lost to Strasburg-Franklin on the road by a 60-41 margin on Friday.

Newcomerstown's defeat dropped their record down to 2-7. As for Tuscarawas Central Catholic, their loss dropped their record down to 1-7.

Tuscarawas Central Catholic strolled past Newcomerstown in their previous matchup back in January of 2024 by a score of 62-48. The rematch might be a little tougher for Tuscarawas Central Catholic since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.