Basketball Game Preview: Petal Panthers vs. Northwest Rankin Cougars

A feisty cat fight will be fought when the Petal Panthers take on the Northwest Rankin Cougars at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday... Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.

Last Saturday, everything went Petal's way against St. Patrick as Petal made off with a 66-45 victory.

Meanwhile, Northwest Rankin scored the most points they've had this season on Saturday, but it wasn't enough. They took a 74-68 hit to the loss column at the hands of Florence. While losing is never fun, the Cougars can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 61st in Mississippi, while the Falcons are ranked 12th in Alabama).

Northwest Rankin's defeat was their fifth straight on the road dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 3-4. That patch can't be blamed on the team's offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 54.0 points per game. As for Petal, their win ended a four-game drought on the road and puts them at 5-8.

Petal couldn't quite finish off Northwest Rankin in their previous matchup back in February and fell 52-50. Can Petal avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.