Preview: Gulf Breeze Dolphins vs. Niceville Eagles
Gulf Breeze is on a three-game streak of home wins, while Niceville is on a five-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Gulf Breeze Dolphins will take on the Niceville Eagles at 6:45 p.m. on Tuesday. Gulf Breeze has been getting the ball to fall more lately as they've increased their point totals each of their last three games.
Even though Gulf Breeze has not done well against Navarre recently (they were 1-8 in their previous nine matchups), they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. Gulf Breeze simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Navarre 54-27 at home. With Gulf Breeze ahead 25-5 at the half, the match was all but over already.
Gulf Breeze got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Jayah Jones out in front who scored 13 points along with four steals. Piper Tieman was another key contributor, scoring six points along with seven rebounds and three steals.
Meanwhile, Niceville stacked a seventh blowout win onto their ever-increasing hoard on Monday. They blew past Navarre 63-34 on the road. Given Niceville's advantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 24th, while Navarre is ranked 226th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Niceville's success was spearheaded by the efforts of Kiyah Hatcher, who scored 19 points along with three steals, and Carson Fayard, who scored 14 points along with six assists and six steals. Fayard has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last 12 times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Anna Kimball, who scored ten points along with eight rebounds.
Gulf Breeze's win bumped their record up to 12-4. As for Niceville, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won seven of their last eight games, which provided a nice bump to their 13-4 record this season.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Gulf Breeze have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 36.6 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Niceville, though, as they've been averaging only 32.4 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Gulf Breeze ended up a good deal behind Niceville in their previous matchup back in December of 2023, losing 58-40. Will Gulf Breeze have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more basketball content.
