The Loachapoka Indians will challenge the Lanett Panthers at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with Loachapoka sitting on three straight wins and Lanett on four.
Loachapoka is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They skirted past Beulah 53-50. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Indians have posted against the Bobcats since December 7, 2021.
Loachapoka relied on the efforts of Essense Key, who posted 12 points in addition to seven boards and five steals, and Amanda Harris, who went 6 of 15 on her way to 15 points along with seven boards and four steals. Key is becoming a predictor of Loachapoka's success: when she posts at least five steals the team is 7-3 (and 1-2 when she doesn't). The team also got some help courtesy of Destiney Core, who had five points and three steals.
Meanwhile, Lanett greeted the New Year with with a 52-37 win over Lee-Scott Academy.
Lanett's win came from a few key players Loachapoka will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was MaKiah White, who went 5 of 9 on her way to 10 points. She has been hot, having also posted two or more blocks the last seven times she's played. Another player making a difference was Jaylin White, who posted 13 points and seven rebounds.
Lanett smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 11 offensive rebounds in five consecutive games.
Lanett is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last nine matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 10-6 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 50.2 points per game. As for Loachapoka, their victory bumped their record up to 8-5.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Loachapoka has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 27.5 boards per game. However, it's not like Lanett struggles in that department as they've been averaging 42 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Loachapoka was taken down by Lanett 57-27 in their previous matchup back in January of 2024. Can Loachapoka avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
