After both having extra time off, the Keystone Panthers and the Port Allegany Gators will dust off their jerseys to challenge one another at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Keystone is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last eight games.
Last Friday, everything went Keystone's way against Union as Keystone made off with a 54-31 victory. Given the Panthers' advantage in MaxPreps' Pennsylvania basketball rankings (they are ranked 308th, while the Knights/Damsels are ranked 665th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Isabella Brandon
| 02/14/25 @ Union | 5 |
| 02/04/25 @ East Forest | 5 |
| 02/03/25 vs Union | 9 |
| 02/01/25 vs Brookville | 4 |
| 01/30/25 vs North Clarion | 2 |
| + 18 more games |
Keystone's success was spearheaded by the efforts of Ashlee Albright, who went 6-for-12 to rack up 17 points and five steals, and Isabella Brandon, who went 5-for-10 on her way to 14 points and five steals. Brandon is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in each of the last 23 games she's played dating back to last season. The team also got some help courtesy of Addison Say, who posted seven points.
Keystone smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in ten consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Port Allegany ended up a good deal behind Coudersport last Wednesday and lost 59-41. The Gators were down 46-23 at the end of the third quarter, which was just too much to recover from.
Keystone will need to focus on slowing down Ella Moses, one of several Port Allegany players who made an impact when they last played. She dropped a double-double with 16 points and 13 boards. Another player making a difference was Peyton Gordon, who earned six points and seven rebounds.
Keystone pushed their record up to 15-7 with the win, which was their fourth straight on the road. They've dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 25 points. As for Port Allegany, their defeat dropped their record down to 17-5.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Keystone has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 29.3 boards per game. However, it's not like Port Allegany struggles in that department as they've been averaging 34.6 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Keystone beat Port Allegany 36-26 in their previous meeting back in February of 2019. Does Keystone have another victory up their sleeve, or will Port Allegany turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
