The Palisades Pumas will face off against the Olympic Trojans at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday.
Palisades is likely headed into the matchup with a focus on the second half, which is when things went downhill against South Mecklenburg on Friday. Palisades took a 51-41 hit to the loss column at the hands of South Mecklenburg. The Pumas have struggled against the Sabres recently, as the game was their sixth consecutive lost matchup.
| 01/03/25 vs South Mecklenburg | 2 |
| 12/28/24 vs Highland Tech | 2 |
| 12/27/24 @ South Point | 4 |
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the best came from Brooklyn Young, who posted 12 points. She is also on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last three games she's played. Another player making a difference was Jade Marshall, who scored eight points and 11 rebounds.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Olympic). They breezed by Ballantyne Ridge to the tune of 58-24 on Friday. With the Trojans ahead 35-9 at the half, the contest was all but over already.
Olympic's win came from a few key players Palisades will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Barri Terry, who put up nine points in addition to five boards and four steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Chaya James, who went 5 of 7 on her way to 10 points along with seven rebounds and three blocks.
Olympic was working as a unit and finished the game with 16 assists. That's the most assists they've posted since back in December of 2023.
Palisades' loss dropped their record down to 5-8. As for Olympic, their victory ended a three-game drought on the road and puts them at 5-8.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Palisades has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 32.2 boards per game. However, it's not like Olympic struggles in that department as they've been averaging 33.8 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Palisades beat Olympic 36-29 in their previous matchup back in February of 2024. Will Palisades repeat their success, or does Olympic have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
