Priory is 1-9 against Pinewood since February of 2020 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Priory Panthers will head out on the road to face off against the Pinewood Panthers at 5:00 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Pinewood will be up against a hot Priory team: the squad just extended their winning streak to four. Priory really took it to Sacred Heart Prep for the full four quarters, racking up a 69-36 win. Given the Panthers' advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 21st, while the Gators are ranked 251st), the result on Tuesday wasn't entirely unexpected.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Priory to victory, but perhaps none more so than Ugreat Daniels, who went 6 for 9 en route to 13 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Nani Tuigamala, who posted ten points along with six rebounds and three steals.
Priory smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 21 offensive boards. That's the most offensive rebounds they've posted since the start of last season.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Pinewood). They blew past Notre Dame 93-33 on Tuesday. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the team's high-flying offense, the game also marked the team's biggest victory of the season.
Priory better keep an eye on Vallory Kuelker. She was instrumental in Pinewood's win, going 11 of 12 on her way to 27 points in addition to five boards and four steals. Kuelker is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last four games she's played. Jolyn Ding was another key player, going 6 for 11 en route to 15 points along with six assists and five rebounds.
Pinewood is on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last nine games, which provided a nice bump to their 13-3 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 67.6 points per game. As for Priory, their record now sits at 15-3.
Priory might still be hurting after the 63-38 defeat they got from Pinewood in their previous matchup two weeks ago. Can Priory avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
