The Palmer Trinity Falcons will challenge the South Dade Buccaneers at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Both are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Last Saturday, Palmer Trinity made easy work of Gulliver Prep and carried off a 71-45 win. Given the Falcons' advantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 91st, while the Raiders are ranked 295th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
| 01/25/25 vs Gulliver Prep | 10 |
| 01/23/25 vs Mater Lakes Academy | 15 |
| 01/21/25 vs Doral Academy | 8 |
| 01/16/25 vs Schoolhouse Prep | 12 |
Palmer Trinity's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Sofia Laria, who dropped a double-double on 18 points and ten rebounds. Laria has been hot recently, having posted eight or more boards the last four times she's played. Another player making a difference was Emma Esparza, who posted eight points in addition to nine assists and seven steals.
Palmer Trinity was working as a unit and finished the game with 19 assists. That's the most assists they've posted since back in November of 2024.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask South Dade). They took their contest on Wednesday with ease, bagging a 66-34 win over Braddock. The Buccaneers have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won six games by 20 points or more this season.
South Dade's win came from a few key players Palmer Trinity will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Justice Sheppard, who dropped a double-double on 20 points and ten rebounds. With that strong performance, she is now averaging an impressive 8.1 boards per game. The team also got some help courtesy of Jurnee Walters, who scored 20 points along with six rebounds and five steals.
South Dade's victory bumped their record up to 8-10. As for Palmer Trinity, they now have a winning record of 10-9.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Palmer Trinity has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 32 boards per game. However, it's not like South Dade struggles in that department as they've been averaging 38.2 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other basketball content.
