Basketball Game Preview: Marietta Blue Devils vs. Wheeler Wildcats

Marietta has gone 6-1 against Wheeler recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Friday. The Marietta Blue Devils will face off against the Wheeler Wildcats at 6:00 p.m. Marietta is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 54.9 points per game this season.

Wheeler better have a healthy lead at halftime, because if last week is any indication, that's when Marietta really get things going. Everything went Marietta's way against Walton on Tuesday as Marietta made off with a 57-33 win. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest victory the Blue Devils have posted since November 14, 2024.

Leah DeWitt and Kyann Senior were among the main playmakers for Marietta as the former went 11 of 15 en route to 25 points along with six rebounds and three blocks and the latter dropped a double-double on 17 points and 15 boards. The matchup was DeWitt's 17th in a row with at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Mckenzie Everett, who posted six points in addition to three steals and three blocks.

Marietta smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in nine consecutive contests.

Meanwhile, Wheeler was not able to break out of their rough patch on Tuesday as the team picked up their third straight loss. They were five points away from ending the streak, but they lost a 42-37 heartbreaker at the hands of Etowah. While losing is never fun, the Wildcats can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Georgia basketball rankings (they are ranked 116th, while the Eagles are ranked 30th).

Wheeler's defeat dropped their record down to 7-10. As for Marietta, their win bumped their record up to 10-7.

Marietta skirted past Wheeler 56-53 when the teams last played back in December of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for Marietta since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.