Basketball Recap: Plant Falls Despite Big Games from Sanae Graham and Madelyn Galuski

After flying high against Wharton on Thursday, Plant came back down to earth. The Plant Panthers took a 70-55 bruising from the Venice Indians on Friday. While losing is never fun, the Panthers can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 291st, while the Indians are ranked 45th).

Plant's loss came despite strong showings from Madelyn Galuski and Sanae Graham. Galuski went 6 for 13 on her way to 19 points and three steals, while Graham dropped a double-double on 12 points and 12 rebounds. Graham is on a roll when it comes to boards, as she's now pulled down 11 or more in the last three games she's played. Another player making a difference was Kacey Cheesman, who posted seven points.

Even though they lost, Plant smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 15 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive boards in three consecutive matches.

Tessa Oleary continued her habit of posting crazy stat lines for Venice, going 13 of 20 en route to 30 points in addition to six rebounds and five steals. Addison Ivery was another key player, putting up eight points along with nine steals and eight assists.

Plant has traveled a rocky road recently having lost five of their last six games, which put a noticeable dent in their 8-11 record this season. As for Venice, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 11-5.

Plant has already played their next contest, a 72-35 loss against Booker on the 18th. As for Venice, they also didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next matchup, a 68-47 victory against Keswick Christian on the 18th.