The halfway point of the regular season has been reached in high school basketball. That means it’s time for conference play to begin in class 4A.

Laramie opens at home by hosting Gillette Friday night and Sheridan on Saturday.

Laramie Lady Plainsmen

It’s been a successful pre-conference for the Laramie Lady Plainsmen in which they went 9-2. They’ve risen to No. 3 in the latest Wyopreps.com Coach’s and Media Poll. They’re also coming off two good wins over No. 4 Rock Springs and Green River last weekend. Overall, the Laramie girls have won four straight.

Second-year head coach Laura Pollard has seen growth in her squad and believes they’re ready for conference play.

The Lady Plainsmen will be tested right away. They take on the top-ranked Gillette Camels Friday at 7 p.m. The Camels are the two-time defending 4A State Champions, and they’re off to a 10-2 start this season. Gillette won last year’s two meetings by 51 and 30 points, respectively.

Laramie’s next opponent will be the Sheridan Broncs on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. Sheridan is 4-7 entering this weekend and will play at Cheyenne South Friday night before facing LHS the next day. The Broncs beat Laramie three times last season, and that included a 50-40 win at the regional tournament.

Laramie Plainsmen

A younger Laramie Plainsmen squad has taken their lumps during the non-conference portion of the season. They have a 3-8 overall record. The Plainsmen lost both games last weekend to No. 5 Rock Springs and Green River. They’ve lost three straight heading into Friday night.

First-year head coach Travis Brown has hit the reset button to a degree this week and knows his team will face two good, yet different squads.

The Plainsmen take on No. 2 Gillette Friday night at 5:30 p.m. The Camels swept all three meetings last year by 28, 19 and 18 points, respectively. They are led by 4A’s leading scorer Trey Hladky, who is averaging 25.9 points per game. Gillette is 6-6 to this point of the season.

Saturday, the Broncs will visit the Gem City to face LHS at 1 p.m. Sheridan is 4-7 on the season and will play No. 4 Cheyenne South Friday night before coming to Laramie. The Plainsmen won two of the three meetings last year, which included a 52-50 thriller at the regional tournament. Both teams have first year head coaches.

KOWB will broadcast all four games live this weekend. Join David Settle and VerDon Hoopes, as they provide the call. The broadcast will start at 4:45 p.m. Friday and at 10:45 a.m. Saturday.

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