Basketball Game Preview: Washington County Panthers vs. Martin County Gators

The Washington County Panthers will face off against the Martin County Gators at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. Washington County will be looking to extend their current four-game winning streak.

Last Friday, Washington County beat Bertie 52-42. Given the Panthers' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 114th, while the Falcons are ranked 302nd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Brandon Carter Jr.

Points

02/14/25 @ Bertie	19
02/11/25 vs Martin County	19
02/07/25 @ Gates County	21
02/05/25 @ Martin County	20
02/04/25 @ North East Carolina Prep	24
+ 3 more games

Christian Phelps and Brandon Carter Jr. were among the main playmakers for Washington County as the former dropped a double-double with 20 points and 20 boards and the latter almost dropped a double-double with 19 points and nine rebounds. Carter Jr.'s evening made it eight games in a row in which he has scored at least 18 points. Another player making a difference was Ishawn Fuller, who posted seven points and ten rebounds.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Martin County, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Tuesday. Everything went their way against Perquimans on Friday as Martin County made off with a 61-40 victory. The Gators have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won seven matchups by 21 points or more this season.

Martin County found their leader in sophomore Jordan Matthewson, who dropped a double-double with 16 points and 15 boards. Matthewson has been hot for a while, having posted eight or more rebounds the last 14 times he's played. Kel'Javious Moore was another key player, dropping a double-double with ten points and 22 boards.

Martin County smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 19 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 12 offensive rebounds in ten consecutive games.

Martin County has been performing well recently as they've won eight of their last ten contests, which provided a nice bump to their 15-5 record this season. As for Washington County, their win bumped their record up to 17-2.

Washington County was able to grind out a solid victory over Martin County when the teams last played on Tuesday, winning 47-38. Will Washington County repeat their success, or does Martin County have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.