LOWELLVILLE, Ohio (WKBN) – WKBN closes out the boys’ basketball regular season schedule with a captivating matchup between the East Golden Bears and the Lowellville Rockets on this Friday’s Game of the Week.

Matt Olson’s Rockets have been near-perfect this season with a record of 19-2.

East has been one of the most improved teams in the entire tri-county area posting 9 more wins than they finished with a year ago.

This has all the earmarks of being an entertaining contest.

High School Boys’ Basketball Game of the Week
Friday, February 17, 2023, at 7 pm LIVE on MyYTV
East (10-11) at Lowellville (19-2)

You can watch the Game of the Week:
Digital over the air at 33.2
Armstrong Cable Channel 13 and 108
Comcast Cable Channel 3
Direct TV Channel 15
MyYTV – Spectrum Channel 997 or 1008

Team Statistics
Scoring Offense: Lowellville, 65.0; East, 54.4
Scoring Defense: Lowellville, 40.3; East, 57.3

Game Notes
-One year ago, the Golden Bears finished their 2021-22 season with just a single win (1-18).

-East jumped out to a 10-point advantage after the first quarter (22-12) before holding off Cloverleaf to post a 64-58 win on Saturday. Cam Sly led the Bears with a double-double (23 points, 10 rebounds) while Jared Colon tallied 15 for coach Chivas Whipple’s group.

-East is matched against Hawken in the sectional semifinal next Tuesday. The winner will play at Girard on Friday.

-The Rockets are seeking their second straight 20-win season. Last year, Lowellville closed out its their with a 20-5 mark.

-Lowellville’s two losses this year were by five points, combined. On January 7, the Rockets fell at South Range (51-47). This past Tuesday, the Rockets dropped a one-point decision to Warren JFK (75-74). Anthony Lucente led Lowellville with 31 points. Despite being ahead by 11 with eight minutes to play, the Rockets were turned away by the Eagles.

-Four days prior, Lowellville finished off a perfect league record at 14-0 by topping Waterloo (69-41). Anthony Lucente and Vinny Ballone scored 18 and 15 points respectively in their perfection-clinching MVAC Scarlet Tier contest.

-Lowellville has a bye into the second round of the playoffs where they’ll meet the winner of Andrews Osborne and Lake Center Christian in the sectional final.

Upcoming Schedule
East
Feb. 21 – at Hawken (Sectional Semifinal)

Lowellville
Feb. 24 – Winner of Andrews Osborne/Lake Center Christian (Sectional Final)