Basketball Game Preview: Gulf Breeze Dolphins vs. West Florida Jaguars

The Gulf Breeze Dolphins will take on the West Florida Jaguars at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. The squads are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Gulf Breeze has struggled recently with 14 defeats in a row, while West Florida will arrive with three straight wins.

Gulf Breeze is headed into the match out to prove that what happened against Clarksville Academy last Monday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Gulf Breeze was outmatched by Clarksville Academy and fell 58-19. The Dolphins were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 36-12.

Meanwhile, West Florida hadn't done well against Pine Forest recently (they were 0-9 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Monday. West Florida took down Pine Forest 55-40.

West Florida found their leader in sophomore Amani Bartholomew, who dropped a double-double on 29 points and 13 rebounds. That makes it five consecutive games in which Bartholomew has scored at least a third of West Florida's points. Shania Beeks was another key player, putting up 12 points along with six assists and six steals.

West Florida smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 15 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in 16 consecutive games.

Gulf Breeze's loss dropped their record down to 1-15. As for West Florida, their victory bumped their record up to 11-7.

Gulf Breeze didn't have too much breathing room in their contest against West Florida in their previous matchup back in November of 2023, but they still walked away with a 47-41 win. Will Gulf Breeze repeat their success, or does West Florida have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.