Basketball Game Preview: Celina Bobcats vs. Panther Creek Panthers

Celina is 0-4 against Panther Creek since January of 2023 but things could change on Friday. A feisty cat fight will be fought when the Celina Bobcats challenge the Panther Creek Panthers at 10:15 a.m.

Celina is coming in off a wild two-game stretch: after soaring to 56 points on Saturday, they were much more limited against Decatur on Tuesday. They were dealt a 102-21 defeat at the hands of the Eagles. The match marked the Bobcats' lowest-scoring game so far this season.

Meanwhile, Panther Creek came tearing into two weeks ago's contest with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 17 points) and they left with even more momentum. They walked away with a 53-43 win over the Indians. Given the Panthers' advantage in MaxPreps' Texas basketball rankings (they are ranked 84th, while the Indians are ranked 260th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Panther Creek has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won seven of their last eight games, which provided a nice bump to their 13-6 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 57.8 points per game. As for Celina, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 10-8.

Celina was dealt a bruising 70-43 loss at the hands of Panther Creek in their previous meeting back in February of 2024. Can Celina avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.