Basketball Game Preview: Paulding Panthers vs. Bluffton Pirates

The Paulding Panthers will head out to take on the Bluffton Pirates at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. One thing working in Paulding's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last three matches.

Paulding is headed into the contest after thoroughly thrashing Antwerp: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Paulding blew Antwerp out of the water with a 61-34 final score. Given the Panthers' advantage in MaxPreps' Ohio basketball rankings (they are ranked 206th, while the Archers are ranked 589th), the result on Thursday wasn't entirely unexpected.

Addi Pease was a one-woman wrecking crew for Paulding as she went 7 for 13 on her way to 15 points in addition to six rebounds and six steals. Pease is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed three or more in the last six games she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Kayleigh Dunham, who went 5 for 10 on her way to 10 points.

Paulding smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive rebounds in 12 consecutive games.

Meanwhile, Bluffton unfortunately witnessed the end of their three-game winning streak on Thursday. They fell to Crestview 60-54.

Paulding's victory was their sixth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 10-2. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 54.0 points per game. As for Bluffton, their loss dropped their record down to 8-5.

Paulding barely slipped by Bluffton in their previous meeting back in February of 2024, winning 50-49. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Bluffton's Ayla Grandey, who almost dropped a double-double on 33 points and nine rebounds. Now that she's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Paulding still be able to contain Grandey? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.