Basketball Game Preview: Newberry Panthers vs. Fort White Indians

Newberry and Fort White are an even 5-5 against one another since January of 2019, but not for long. The two teams will face off at 6:00 p.m. on Friday without much rest having both just played. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.

Newberry took a loss when they played away from home on Tuesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Thursday. They claimed a resounding 62-12 win over Santa Fe.

Newberry relied on the efforts of Brandy Whitfield, who went 9 of 12 on her way to 19 points in addition to five assists and four steals, and Sarah Beaulieu, who went 7 for 10 on her way to 17 points in addition to six assists and five boards. Whitfield's evening made it five games in a row in which she has scored at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Jada Brown, who posted eight points.

Meanwhile, Fort White had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 20.5 points) and they went ahead and made it three on Thursday. They really took it to the Bears for the full four quarters, racking up a 66-27 victory. With the Indians ahead 46-12 at the half, the matchup was all but over already.

Fort White's win came from a few key players Newberry will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Ya'Zuri Hollie, who had 20 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Erickah Roberson, who put up 17 points.

Fort White pushed their record up to 5-1 with the win, which was their third straight on the road. As for Newberry, they are on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four contests, which provided a nice bump to their 5-3 record this season.

Everything came up roses for Newberry against Fort White when the teams last played back in February, as the team secured an 80-48 victory. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Fort White's Isreal Hart, who posted 31 points. Now that she's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Newberry still be able to contain Hart? There's only one way to find out.