Basketball Game Preview: South Dade Buccaneers vs. Palmetto Panthers

South Dade hasn't had much luck against Palmetto recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. The South Dade Buccaneers will square off against the Palmetto Panthers. Having both just faced considerable losses, both teams are looking to turn things around.

South Dade is headed into the matchup out to prove that what happened against Palmer Trinity on Friday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. South Dade lost 55-31 to Palmer Trinity. The Buccaneers were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 34-11.

South Dade's defeat came about despite a quality game from Justice Sheppard, who posted 12 points and three steals.

Meanwhile, after soaring to 69 points the game before, Palmetto was a bit more limited in their game on Monday. They took a blow against Homestead, falling 54-17. While losing is never fun, the Panthers can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 284th, while the Broncos are ranked 131st).

Palmetto now has a losing record at 6-7. As for South Dade, their loss dropped their record down to 8-11.

South Dade lost to Palmetto on the road by a decisive 53-36 margin when the teams last played back in January. Can South Dade avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.