The Bartow Yellow Jackets will head out on the road to take on the Lake Gibson Braves at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Given that both teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this game.
Bartow pushed their score all the way to 56 on Thursday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They ended up on the wrong side of a rough 80-56 walloping at the hands of Winter Haven. While losing is never fun, Bartow can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 171st, while Winter Haven is ranked fifth).
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the most dominant came from Messiah Borders, who scored 16 points along with five assists. As a matter of fact, that's the most points he has scored all season. Another player making a difference was Antwan Willis, who scored 13 points.
Lake Gibson suffered their biggest defeat since November 28, 2023 on Monday. They took a serious blow against Lakeland, falling 81-44.
Bartow's defeat was their third straight on the road, which bumped their record down to 8-8. As for Lake Gibson, their loss dropped their record down to 9-8.
Everything came up roses for Bartow against Lake Gibson in their previous meeting back in January of 2023 as the squad secured a 81-54 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Bartow since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
