The Wiregrass Ranch Bulls will head out to challenge the Land O' Lakes Gators at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Wiregrass Ranch is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They simply couldn't be stopped on Tuesday as they easily beat Pasco 61-23. Given the Bulls' advantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 321st, while the Pirates are ranked 661st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Wiregrass Ranch's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Andralee Keim, who went 6 of 11 from beyond the arc en route to 21 points in addition to five assists and five rebounds. Keim is trending in the right direction considering she's improved her point production for five straight games. Anabella Nieves was another key player, going 5 for 9 on her way to 14 points and seven assists.
Keim wasn't the only one working in the assists department: Wiregrass Ranch was working as a unit and finished the game with 20 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Land O' Lakes beat East Lake 48-36 on Thursday. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Gators.
Land O' Lakes' win came from a few key players Wiregrass Ranch will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Jessi Saffold, who almost dropped a double-double on ten points and nine steals. Saffold is crushing it when it comes to steals: she's grabbed at least five every time she's taken the court this season. Another player making a difference was Alex Nichols, who posted 19 points.
Land O' Lakes' win bumped their record up to 9-10. As for Wiregrass Ranch, they now have a winning record of 8-7.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Wiregrass Ranch has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 30.1 boards per game. However, it's not like Land O' Lakes struggles in that department as they've been averaging 34.3 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Wiregrass Ranch came up short against Land O' Lakes in their previous meeting back in December of 2023, falling 51-43. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Land O' Lakes' Jaylin Neder, who dropped a double-double on 27 points and 12 steals. Now that Wiregrass Ranch knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.
