One night after the Houlton girls beat Presque Isle in one of the biggest games of the season, the Shire and Wildcat boys will square off on the hardwood for a 7 p.m. showdown in Houlton.
Presque Isle (8-2) is riding a four-game win streak coming into Thursday’s matchup. The Wildcats are ranked second in Class B North.
Houlton also sports an 8-2 record and is fifth in Class C North. The Shires are also on an impressive four-game win streak, averaging 81 points per game, while allowing just 36 per game.
The two teams have met once already, with Presque Isle picking up a 66-60 win Dec. 14.
“Tonight’s game against Houlton should be a very good game,” Presque Isle coach Terry Cummings said. “This is a big game for both teams with a lot of heal points on the line. A win tonight keeps us near the top in Northern Maine Class B and a win for Houlton gives them much needed points to climb the ladder in Northern Maine Class C. A lot is on the line for both teams.”
Cummings said the Shires have a definite height advantage, which will be difficult to combat.
“We are undersized as the Shires have Cam Cleary and we don’t have anyone of that size to match up with him,” he said. “We will try and keep him off the low block and force him out of the paint, but his midrange game has also improved. He had 20 points against us in the game at PI.”
The coach added that Shire Keegan Gentle also had a good game against the Wildcats, scoring 21 points. “We had a hard time containing him off the dribble,” Cummings said. “We will need to do a better job tonight.”
To be successful, Cummings said the Wildcats need to win the battle of the boards and execute offensively. “Our defense so far this season has been outstanding as we have been able to play some great man to man and have also been able to apply some full court pressure as well,” he said. “We will need to make our free throws. They are a very good team and we will have to play very well to beat them.”
Other basketball games on today’s schedule include: Hodgdon at Washburn for a doubleheader, 5:30 p.m. girls and 7 p.m. boys; Greater Houlton Christian Academy at Southern Aroostook boys, 4 p.m.; Easton at Southern Aroostook girls, 6 p.m., Fort Fairfield at Central Aroostook girls, 7 p.m.; and East Grand at Shead, boys at 5 p.m., girls at 6:30 p.m.
A nordic ski meet will be held Thursday at 3 p.m. at Nordic Heritage Center in Presque Isle.
The following is a recap of games played Wednesday evening.
Fort Kent boys 68, Central Aroostook 59 — At Mars Hill, the visiting Warriors (7-3, and ranked fourth in Class C North) upset Central Aroostook (10-2 and second in Class C North). Caleb Delisle poured in 18 points for Fort Kent, while Jace Rocheleau added 17.
Brayden Bradbury paced Central Aroostook with a game-high 22 points.
Fort Kent led 25-9, 43-21 and 54-37 at the quarter breaks.
Katahdin girls 49, Wisdom 28 — At Wisdom, the visiting Cougars picked up the 21-point victory over Wisdom. The Cougars are now 7-4 on the season and ranked fourth in Class D North. Wisdom continues to search for its first win at 0-9.
Haley Landry led the Cougars with 13 points, seven rebounds and two steals. Lily Cullen added 10 points, three rebounds and four steals. Hannah Drew contributed eight points, nine rebounds and a steal. Danielle Libby scored eight points and had three steals. Maddie Landry had 10 rebounds. Natalie Rickards had five rebounds and two steals.
Wisdom was led by Alyssa Banville with 18 points, three of which were 3-pointers.
Katahdin boys 60, Wisdom 38 — At Wisdom, Katahdin notched the victory over the Pioneers. The Cougars improved to 8-2 with the win and are currently third in Class D North. Wisdom dropped to 2-7 and is 12th.
The visiting Cougars used a 20-7 third quarter run to pull away from the Pioneers and added to its lead with a 17-9 advantage in the fourth quarter to earn the win. Katahdin was paced by Hunter Craig, who led all scorers with 33 points, while Brody Guiggey contributed 21 points.
For Wisdom, Jack Guerrette posted 17 points.
