The Aplington-Parkersburg basketball teams will make their first trip to Jesup in nearly two years when the programs meet for an NICL crossover doubleheader Tuesday on 99 The Wave.
The Falcon girls (11-4, 4-3 NICL-C) will look to win consecutive games for the first time since January 11, having alternated wins and losses in the last five games. Head Coach Brady Driscol says this is the start of a critical stretch of games.
“The next three games are pretty big for us, and good teams,” Driscol says. “I think all Jesup, GR and Denver all probably have three or less losses, so they’ve been winning games. Start with Jesup, they always play extremely hard. They get up in you and try to turn you over just like we try to do too, and they have a big kid, good offensive rebounder. GR has a lot of length this year, then obviously we know what Denver has. Just ramping up the pressure, finding shooters and playing solid defense. And then trying to just put together efficient offensive possessions. 38 points iss not gonna cut it too many nights. If we can get up in that 50 range again, we’ll feel alright.”
They’re coming off Friday’s 38-32 win over Dike-New Hartford, where a strong defense made up for a 33 percent shooting performance.
Jesup (12-3, 7-0 NICL-E) has won seven straight, all by multiple possessions.
The Falcon boys (13-1, 7-0 NICL-C) have won six straight, including 58-53 over Dike-New Hartford Friday, where numerous contributors led to the win. Head Coach Aaron Thomas says some role players have been crucial in recent wins.
“Jackson Mulder Friday night, can’t say enough,” Thomas says. “He broke his nose over Christmas break. Hadn’t played a ton. He never pouts. In practice, he always knows what to do and he knows exactly where to be, where to help, what to do. And he’s just a great teammate. His hustle, his effort. He took a big charge for us against Hudson. He took another big one against Costello from Dike-New Hartford. Those guys have been really good. Sully Janssen, just the toughness to miss your first four free throws and then make your next six. That’s a statement about him, Preston Janssen is doing a lot of good things for us. It was good to see Trevan Thomas have a good night with a little more confidence. He’d been struggling a little bit. But it’s really cool to see our team and the way they cheer for one another.”
Jesup (8-5, 5-2 NICL-E) is led by Ryan Treptow, whose 22.4 points per game are the best among all divisions of the NICL.
Pregame coverage will start at 6:00 p.m., followed by the tipoff at 6:15.
In other Falcon action, the AP/GC boys wrestling team will host a triangular in Parkersburg with Dike-New Hartford and Wapsie Valley. Action will start at 6:15 p.m.
