Two dominant guards in Tymber Cozzens and Gavin Pittington are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Little Snake River Rattlers will square off against the North Park Wildcats at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. Little Snake River is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last four games.
Little Snake River is headed into the game after thoroughly thrashing Fort Washakie: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Little Snake River blew Fort Washakie out of the water with a 78-35 final score. The contest was all but wrapped up at the end of the third, by which point the Rattlers had established a 33 point advantage.
Little Snake River found their leader in sophomore Cozzens, who almost dropped a double-double with 14 points and nine boards. The team also got some help courtesy of Mason Jones, who posted six points along with five rebounds and four steals.
Little Snake River smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 18 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in seven consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, while it was all tied up 23-23 at halftime, North Park was not quite Caprock Academy's equal in the second half on Saturday. They fell just short of the Eagles by a score of 43-40.
Little Snake River will have to keep a close watch on Pittington and Graham Cornelison, a pair of players who had a big impact on North Park's prior game. Pittington put up 15 points and three steals, while Cornelison scored 13 points and five boards. That's the most points Cornelison has posted since back in December of 2023.
Little Snake River's victory bumped their record up to 12-4. As for North Park, their loss dropped their record down to 8-7.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Little Snake River has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 32.9 rebounds per game. However, it's not like North Park struggles in that department as they've been averaging 22.9 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Everything came up roses for Little Snake River against North Park in their previous meeting back in January of 2024, as the team secured a 54-25 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Little Snake River since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
