The Area Game of the Week makes its return to the Superconference tonight, with Hillcrest Academy basketball welcoming the Pekin Panthers.
The Raven girls dropped to 4-11 after a loss to Lone Tree on Friday night 60-27. A slow start left Hillcrest playing catchup for most of the night against one of the Superconference’s top teams. Still, Malia Yoder managed a double-double while Claire Withrow knocked down some threes to continue leading 1A basketball with 49. The Ravens, like most Iowa teams, would like to get into a rhythm this week and improve on their 37.5 points per game. Hillcrest owns the 10th-best three point percentage in their class, and have grabbed the eighth-most defensive rebounds.
They’ll need to hit the glass against a 5-9 Pekin team trying to bounce back from consecutive losses to Columbus and Cardinal. In the six-point loss to the Wildcats, Anna Hadley and Alex Parsons each went for 7 points, as no Panther reached double-figures. Abby Guise owned the boards with 17 in the losing effort. Very comparable to Hillcrest, Pekin scores around 36 points per night while allowing 44. The Panthers shoot 28.6% from the field, 22.6% from three, and 44.4% from the line to go with 36 rebounds, nine assists, eight steals, two blocks, and 22 turnovers per game. Pekin has won 24 straight against the Ravens, including a 54-39 win earlier this season.
Hillcrest’s boys have won their last two games to maintain third place in the Superconference, a half game ahead of Pekin. The Ravens staved off Lone Tree last week by a final of 67-50. Rowan Miller was the pace setter with 20 points while Mason Bender added 18. Seth Ours, much like Claire Withrow, finds himself top five in his class for three pointers made as he connected on three more. The Raven boys are tied for fifth in three point percentage as a unit, helping them to more than 55 points per game. Paired with a shooting percentage of more than 45, Hillcrest is one of 1A’s best facilitating teams, averaging nearly 17 assists a night.
They host a Pekin team that likes to shoot the deep ball as well and did just that in a 63-47 win over Columbus on Saturday. Sven Dahlstrom hit four from beyond the arc to finish with 19. JaeDon Wolver added another, ending the night with a massive 16-point, 23-rebound double double. The Panthers average 55 points each game, and allow just over 50. Owning a field goal percentage of 38.8, three point percentage of 31.2, and a free throw percentage of 47.1, Pekin averages 32 rebounds, 13 assists, 10 steals, 2 blocks and 12 turnovers per game. Hillcrest took the last meeting in December 61-52.
Hear the Ravens and Panthers square off in the KCII Area Game of the Week available exclusively on the KCII3 Stream. Pregame coverage begins at 5:30 p.m. live from Hillcrest Union with girls tip at 6 and the boys to follow.