The Western Nebraska Community College and Eastern Wyoming College men's and women's basketball teams will renew the Highway 26 battle when the two teams battle in a Region IX South sub-region contest Saturday night.
The WNCC and EWC women will open the doubleheader at 5:30 p.m. at Cougars Palace. The last time these two squads played was back in March when the Cougars came back to top the Lancers 53-51 to win the Region IX title.
The two men's squads bring plenty of offense when they meet at 7:30 p.m. The Cougar men are the 10th highest-scoring team in the nation, scoring at a clip of 100.6 points. The Lancers are the 56th highest scoring team with an 89.3 average.
Saturday's doubleheader will definitely be offensive-minded. The men's contest could see two teams hit the century mark with WNCC hitting 100 points in the last four games and 8 of their 11 games played, while EWC has scored 100 or more points five times in nine games.
The women's contest could also be high scoring. The Lancers are averaging 76.4 points a contest, having scored 90 points in it last two contests. EWC enters with an 8-4 record and winners of their last six games.
The Cougar women are 11-2 on the season and winners of their last four games. WNCC is averaging 80.2 points a game and have scored 90 or more points five times. The Cougar men are 9-2 and coming off a big 77-72 win over No. 18 Casper College on Tuesday.
"For us every game is big, but this game is big because EWC is considered our rivals," Cougar sophomore Marlon Sierra said. "There is always a big crowd and the crowd gets involved."
Added to the closeness of the teams the fact that both teams love to score. That is why defense might decide the winner come Saturday night.
"It definitely will be an offensive game," Sierra said. "But, for us, we are looking forward to playing the best defense we have played all year and hold them down to 60 points is the goal. We have been working hard in practice for that."
Defense will definitely be the key. The Cougars are giving up 82.4 points a game while EWC is allowing 66 points a contest.
What makes each team go on offense, though, is the 3-point shooting. The Cougars are shooting at a 44.7 clip. Trent Harris and Vinnie Shahid have each nailed 32 treys on the season, while Djodje Dimitrijevic has buried 21 long balls and Martin Roub 20 treys.
EWC is making 38 percent of their shots, but allowing teams to make 49 percent. The Lancers have buried 82 treys this season, led by Walker Korell with 22 3-pointers and then Kolton Wall with 13.
Sierra knows what it will take to win, shutting down the EWC offense.
"Good defense is crucial. Defense serves offense. If you can stop teams, you can get long rebounds, outlets, and you can get the other team out of rhythm," he said. "Defense is the biggest part of the game. If we don't play defense, I feel we can score more than 110 points on any team. Defense is the most important part of the game."
The women's game will also be a battle. The Cougars and Lancers are rather equal this season. WNCC is making 48 percent of their shots from the field and have already made 73 3-pointers for 35 percent. Melisa Kadic had buried 21 treys this season followed by Olivia Wiberg with 14 and Merle Wiehl with 13.
The Cougars women also have four players in double figures. Wiehl leads with a 15.6 average followed by Kadic at 12.6, Jaleesa Avery at 11.3, and Karli Seay at 10.9.
EWc women are about the same, making 43 percent from the field and shooting 34 percent from beyond the arc. The Lancers are led from beyond the arc from Lauren O'Connell with 23 treys followed by Cathlyn Knutson with 17.
The Lancers also have four players in double figures. O'Connell is averaging 15.5 points followed by Pamela Bethel at 14.9, Ines Salat Margarit at 12.2, and Abril Rexach Roure at 11.4.