By GREG MENGELT

There’s really no such thing as a “road trip” in high school basketball. After all, the team returns to their homes between every game.

What Jeffersonville (7-4) has been through the last three weeks, though, as about as tough as a schedule maker can be on a high school team. The Red Devils have played six games in a row on the road — two wins and four losses — and closes the “road trip” Saturday afternoon with a game against eighth-ranked Columbus East (9-1) at the Orange Pit in the Hoosier Hills Hoops Game of the Day.

Throw in injuries and illnesses and these are clearly the dog days of the Red Devils’ season.

“In the end, this should make us a better team,” Jeff second-year head coach Missy Voyles said. “People have had to step up and take larger roles on the offensive end of the floor.”

A couple of the players who have seen increased roles are senior Nevaeh Bates and sophomore La’Kyra Johnson, who have thrived on the defensive end for the Red Devils.

“They have both done an outstanding job stifling our opponents’ best offensive players recently,” Voyles said. “Sophia Reese and Elle Marble have been shooting the ball well. Our post game is improving as the year goes along. We are doing better job getting the ball to the post, which just helps with balance.”

East is currently on a 7-game winning streak. Four of the Olympians’ last five games have been away from home. They’ve won all of them, including a 71-42 win at Martinsville on Tuesday.

Jeff has had two shots at the Hoosier Hills Conference’s best teams. BNL knocked off the Red Devils 53-31 on Nov. 20 then Jennings County earned a 50-32 win over Jeff on Nov. 23 … both away from home, of course.

“Columbus East has a veteran group back with great size and outside shooters,” Voyles said. “It should be a great test for us to see if we have made improvements since our Jennings County and BNL games.”

The Red Devils finally get to play at Johnson Arena on Tuesday when they host Charlestown (8-2) at Johnson Arena.

GAME OF THE DAY
JEFFERSONVILLE (7-4, 1-2 HHC) AT COLUMBUS EAST (9-1, 1-0)
• Time: 1:30 p.m.
• Location: Orange Pit, East H.S. (230 S. Marr Rd., Columbus)
• Coaches:
Jeffersonville — Missy Voyles (13-16 in second season at Jeff, 283-130 in 18th season overall)
East — Danny Brown (283-152 in 19th season at East, 341-180 in 23rd season overall)
• Rankings:
East — No. 11 IBCA (single class); No. 8 ICGSA (Class 4A).
• Computer-based Sagarin Ratings:
Jeffersonville — No. 60, No. 42 Class 4A
East — No. 22, No. 18 Class 4A
• Most recent game:
Jeffersonville — Lost at Sacred Heart (Ky.) 64-26 (Dec. 9)
East — Won at Martinsville 71-42 (Dec. 7)
• Last 20 years: Jeff 16-6. The Red Devils have beaten East 6 of the last 7 times.
• Most recent meeting: Dec. 12, 2020 — East 59, at Jeffersonville 49.
• News & notes: Sophomore La’Kyra Johnson had 9 points to lead the Red Devils in Thursday’s 64-26 loss. … The Olympians are currently riding a 7-game winning streak. … East opened its season with a 57-48 win over Floyd Central. That was the Oympians’ last Hoosier Hills Conference game before Saturday. … East is led by senior Koryn Greiwe and junior Saige Stahl. Combined the duo averaged 30.2 of the Olympians’ 61 points per game.
• John Harrell prediction: East 55, Jeffersonville 42.
• Sagarin projection: East by 14.
• Outlook: East is probably better at this point and the Olympians are playing at home, but don’t be surprised if Jeff steals this win.
• Greg’s pick: East 63, Jeffersonville 57.

NEW ALBANY (4-7, 0-1 HHC) AT JENNINGS COUNTY (8-2, 0-1)
• Time: 1:30 p.m.
• Location: Charles Hurley Gymnasium, Jennings County H.S. (800 W. Walnut St., North Vernon)
• Coaches:
New Albany — Shelby Gliebe (10-23 in second season at New Albany, 14-42 in third season overall)
Jennings County — Kristi Sigler (69-63 in sixth season at Jennings)
• Computer-based Sagarin Ratings:
New Albany — No. 121, No. 55 Class 4A
Jennings County — No. 48, No. 36 Class 4A
• Most recent game:
New Albany — Lost to Scottsburg 66-57 (Dec. 9)
Jennings County — Defeated Seymour 70-42 (Dec. 7)
• Last 20 years: New Albany 14-11. Jennings has won 4 in a row over the Bulldogs.
• Most recent meeting: Jan. 5 — Jennings County 53, at New Albany 40.
• News & notes: New Albany is currently on a 6-game losing streak. All six losses came against teams with .500 or better records this season. … New Albany held a 34-26 halftime lead against Scottsburg in Thursday’s 9-point loss. The Bulldogs were outscored 23-7 in the third quarter. … The Panthers started the season 7-0 before back-to-back losses to No. 4 Bedford North Lawrence (9-1) and No. 13 East Central (6-1).
• John Harrell prediction: Jennings County 61, New Albany 37.
• Sagarin projection: Jennings County by 19.
• Outlook: Jennings County is probably the most underrated teams in the Southern Indiana.
• Greg’s pick: Jennings County 59, New Albany 44.

FLOYD CENTRAL (3-6) AT BLOOMINGTON NORTH (5-5)
• Time: 1:30 p.m.
• Location: The Cougar Den, North H.S. (3901 N. Kinser Pike, Bloomington)
• Coaches:
Floyd Central — Randy Gianfagna (23-53 in fourth season at Floyd Central)
North — Jeff Turmail (29-73 in fifth season at North)
• Computer-based Sagarin Ratings:
Floyd Central — No. 162, No. 65 Class 4A
North — No. 132, No. 59 Class 4A
• Most recent game:
Floyd Central — Lost at Silver Creek 47-34 (Dec. 8)
North — Won at Owen Valley 52-49 (Dec. 7)
• Last 20 years: Floyd Central 6-1.
• Most recent meeting: Dec. 12, 2020 — North 44, at Floyd 40.
• News & notes: Six Highlanders scored in Wednesday’s loss against Silver Creek, led by Natalya Gaines’ 8 and 7 apiece from Kendall Brown and Samara Miller. … North’s last winning season came in 2010-11 when the Cougars went 15-8 under Alana Harrington.
• John Harrell prediction: Floyd Central 45, North 44.
• Sagarin projection: North by 4.
• Outlook: This is one that’s so close, we’ll take the team with the homecourt advantage. But there’s no doubt the Highlanders can win this game.
• Greg’s pick: Bloomington North 50, Floyd Central 45.

LOUISVILLE CENTRAL (2-2) AT SILVER CREEK (10-0)
• Time: 7:30 p.m.
• Location: Silver Creek H.S. (557 Renz Avenue, Sellersburg)
• Coaches:
Central — Deshawn D. Pendleton (coaching record unavailable)
Silver Creek — Scott Schoen (165-108 in 12th season at Silver Creek)
• Rankings:
Central — Unavailable.
Silver Creek — No. 9 IBCA (single class); No. 2 ICGSA (Class 3A).
• Most recent game:
Central — Defeated Male 55-40 (Dec. 7)
Silver Creek — Defeated Floyd Central 47-34 (Dec. 8)
• Last 20 years: First meeting.
• News & notes: Silver Creek is 10-0 for the second straight season. … Silver Creek senior Kynidi Mason-Striverson scored her 1,000th career point during the Dragons’ 13-point win over Floyd Central on Wednesday. She finished with a game-high 28 points as Creek improved to 10-0. … Silver Creek scored just 2 points in the second quarter Wednesday against Floyd. The scored a minimum of 13 in the other three periods. … The Yellow Jackets went 14-1 last season before dropping a 54-51 decision to eventual state champion Sacred Heart in the 7th Region championship. … Senior Amaya Asher returns for Central after scoring 14.9 points for game last season. Sophomore Destiny Jones is currently leading the Yellow Jackets at 16.5 points per contest.
• Outlook: Central is really good, but it’s not smart to pick against the Dragons.
• Greg’s pick: Silver Creek 66, Central 60.

PROVIDENCE (2-7) AT BORDEN (5-3)
• Time: 2:30 p.m.
• Location: Borden Junior-Senior H.S. (301 West St., Borden)
• Coaches:
Providence — Brad Burden (161-155 in 14th season at Providence)
Borden — Matt Vick (39-59 in fifth season at Borden)
• Computer-based Sagarin Ratings:
Providence — No. 320, No. 81 Class 2A
Borden — No. 307, No. 55 Class A
• Most recent game:
Providence — Lost at North Harrison 38-25 (Dec. 9)
Borden — Lost to Lanesville 59-16 (Dec. 9)
• Last 20 years: Providence 4-2. Borden has won 2 of the last 3 against the Pioneers.
• Most recent meeting: Dec. 12, 2020 — Borden 56, at Providence 37.
• News & notes: Maci Hoskins had a team-best 12 points — knocking down four 3-pointers — in the Pioneers’ 38-25 loss to North Harrison on Thursday. … Borden has five wins in its first seven games for the second straight season.
• John Harrell prediction: Providence 40, Borden 39.
• Sagarin projection: Borden by 7.
• Outlook: Like we said earlier this week, we like the way Burden has the Pioneers playing.
• Greg’s pick: Providence 38, Borden 36.

BROWNSTOWN CENTRAL (3-7, 1-3) AT AUSTIN (2-7, 0-4)
• Time: 1:30 p.m.
• Location: Austin H.S. (401 South Highway 31, Austin)
• Coaches:
Brownstown — Brandon Allman (48-18 in third season at Brownstown)
Austin — Jared Petersen (233-171 in 17th season at Austin)
• Computer-based Sagarin Ratings:
Brownstown — No. 128, No. 40 Class 3A
Austin — No. 271, No. 67 Class 2A
• Most recent game:
Brownstown — Lost at Salem 61-28 (Dec. 7)
Austin — Won at Switzerland County 63-30 (Dec. 9)
• Last 20 years: Brownstown 18-9. The Braves are on a 5-game winning streak against Austin.
• Most recent meeting: Dec. 12, 2020 — At Brownstown 52, Austin 27.
• News & notes: So far this season, Austin has two wins sandwiching seven losses. The wins have came against 5-5 Madison and 8-2 Switzerland County. … All three of Brownstown’s MSC losses have come on the road against one of the league’s best teams — by 7 at Corydon on Nov. 6, by 7 at Scottsburg on Nov. 26 and at Salem by 34 on Dec. 7.
• John Harrell prediction: Brownstown 52, Austin 43.
• Sagarin projection: Brownstown by 17.
• Outlook: So Austin is inconsistent. It wasn’t shocking the Eagles beat Switzerland County on Thursday, but the way they did it was. We’ll take Brownstown, but don’t be surprised if Austin pulls off another surprise.
• Greg’s pick: Brownstown 55, Austin 49.