Preview: Catoosa Indians vs. Verdigris Cardinals
Catoosa has been on the road for four straight, but on Friday they'll finally head home. They will be home for the holidays to greet the Verdigris Cardinals at 6:00 p.m. Catoosa will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps Oklahoma Rankings (they are ranked 326th, while Verdigris is ranked 83rd).
It's never fun to lose, and it's even less fun to lose 70-34, which was the final score in Catoosa's tilt against Locust Grove on Tuesday.
Despite the loss, Catoosa had strong showings from Tinsley Mitchell, who scored 16 points along with five rebounds, and Jacquelyn Cornwell, who scored 15 points. Mitchell scored a full 47.1% of Catoosa's points, the fourth time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points.
Catoosa struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only four offensive rebounds. That's the fewest offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Verdigris blew past Hilldale, posting a 60-33 win at home. The win was just what Verdigris needed coming off of a 57-34 defeat in their prior matchup.
Catoosa bumped their record down to 2-3 with that loss, which was their eighth straight on the road dating back to last season. That rough patch could be blamed on the team's offensive performance across that stretch, as they only averaged 28.1 points per game. As for Verdigris, their win bumped their record up to 4-1.
Catoosa was taken down by Verdigris 67-19 when the teams last played back in February of 2021. Will Catoosa have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other basketball content.
