Preview: Grand Island Islanders vs. Norfolk Panthers
Grand Island has been on the road for three straight, but on Friday they'll finally head home. They will take on the Norfolk Panthers at TBD on Friday. Hopefully Grand Island focused on turnovers this week since the team gave up 19 on Tuesday.
Grand Island suffered their biggest loss yet this season on Tuesday. They suffered a tough 75-50 loss at the hands of Bryan. While losing is never fun, Grand Island can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska basketball rankings (they are ranked 161st, while Bryan is ranked 40th).
Defeat or not, Grand Island got some senior leadership from Evan McDonald and Mukadi Mukoma. McDonald scored 14 points, while Mukoma. scored 11 points along with seven rebounds and two steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points McDonald has scored all season. Reid Kelly was another key contributor, scoring three points.
Norfolk can finally bid farewell to their three-game losing streak thanks to their game on Tuesday. In a tight game that could have gone either way, they made off with a 65-64 win over Lincoln Northeast. The victory was just what Norfolk needed coming off of a 70-27 defeat in their prior game.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Norfolk to victory, but perhaps none more so than Ethan Synovec, who scored 14 points along with five rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Brayden Hendershot, who scored 13 points.
Grand Island dropped their record down to 4-9 with that loss, which was their fourth straight on the road. Those losses can't be blamed on the team's offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 53.3 points per game. As for Norfolk, their victory bumped their record up to 5-9.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Grand Island have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 23 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Norfolk struggles in that department as they've been averaging 22.8 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Grand Island came up short against Norfolk in their previous matchup back in January of 2023, falling 58-51. Thankfully for Grand Island, Jack Borgmann (who dropped a double-double on 15 points and ten rebounds) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
