Basketball Game Preview: Pasquotank County Panthers vs. Northeastern Eagles

Pasquotank County is 0-10 against Northeastern since February of 2020 but things could change on Thursday. The Pasquotank County Panthers will challenge the Northeastern Eagles at 7:30 p.m. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.

Pasquotank County is headed into Thursday's contest looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their third straight game on Tuesday. They fell 74-65 to First Flight. While losing is never fun, the Panthers can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 359th, while the Nighthawks are ranked 122nd).

Branden Smith

Field Goal Percentage

02/11/25 vs First Flight	60%
02/07/25 @ Currituck County	50%
02/05/25 @ Camden County	55%
02/03/25 @ Manteo	89%
02/01/25 vs Northeastern	70%
+ 5 more games

Despite their defeat, Pasquotank County saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Branden Smith, who went 6 of 10 on his way to 13 points and five boards, was perhaps the best of all. Smith is also on a roll when it comes to shooting accuracy, as he's posted one of at least 45% in the last ten games he's played. Another player making a difference was Jayon Harris, who posted 11 points and five rebounds.

Meanwhile, Northeastern waltzed into their match on Tuesday with eight straight wins... but they left with nine. They took down the Knights 64-49.

Pasquotank County's loss dropped their record down to 8-12. As for Northeastern, their win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 17-2.

Pasquotank County came up short against Northeastern in their previous meeting last Saturday, falling 60-54. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Northeastern's Tyell Saunders, who scored 26 points and six steals. Now that Pasquotank County knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.