Basketball Game Preview: Bayside Bears vs. Okeechobee Brahmans

Bayside is 1-7 against Okeechobee since December of 2015 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Saturday. Both will compete for holiday cheer at 2:30 p.m. Bayside is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 60.3 points per game this season.

Bayside is headed into the match after thoroughly thrashing Space Coast: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Bayside blew Space Coast out of the water with a 71-19 final score. Given the Bears' advantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 281st, while the Vipers are ranked 753rd), the result on Friday wasn't entirely unexpected.

Omar Clarke was his usual excellent self, going 8 of 11 on his way to 20 points. He is also on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed two or more in the last four games he's played. Another player making a difference was Caden Newton, who posted nine points and six steals.

Meanwhile, Okeechobee was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap on Thursday as they fell 41-36 to South Fork. The game marked the Brahmans' lowest-scoring contest so far this season.

The win (which was Bayside's third in a row) raised their record to 8-3. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 63.7 points per game. As for Okeechobee, their loss dropped their record down to 8-3.

Bayside took a serious blow against Okeechobee in their previous matchup back in January, falling 52-22. That match was all but decided by halftime, at which point Bayside was down 32-7.