Basketball Game Preview: Croatan Cougars vs. Richlands Wildcats

A feisty cat fight will be fought as the Cougars face off against the Wildcats at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Croatan has nine straight victories, Richlands has ten straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the court.

Last Thursday, Croatan earned a 60-53 win over West Carteret. The Cougars pushed the score to 48-24 by the end of the third, a deficit the Patriots cut but never quite recovered from.

Neely McMannen

Steals

02/13/25 @ West Carteret	4
02/11/25 vs Richlands	2
02/07/25 @ White Oak	4
02/05/25 vs Dixon	3
02/04/25 vs Swansboro	4
+ 6 more games

Neely McMannen was her usual excellent self, going 8-for-17 en route to 28 points and four steals. She has been hot for a while, having posted two or more steals the last 11 times she's played. Another player making a difference was Layla Shearin, who dropped a double-double with 14 points and ten rebounds.

Meanwhile, Richlands ended up a good deal behind Dixon on Thursday and lost 42-27.

Croatan pushed their record up to 15-1 with the victory, which was their fourth straight on the road. As for Richlands, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-16.

Everything came up roses for Croatan against Richlands in their previous meeting on Tuesday, as the team secured a 66-25 win. In that match, Croatan amassed a halftime lead of 40-11, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Wednesday.