Port St. Joe is 1-9 against Franklin County since February of 2020 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Thursday. The Port St. Joe Tiger Sharks will face off against the Franklin County Seahawks at 5:30 p.m. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the pair posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
With a playoff game on the line, Port St. Joe rose to the challenge on Tuesday. They were the clear victor by a 65-44 margin over the Gators. Port St. Joe pushed the score to 59-28 by the end of the third, a deficit Wewahitchka cut but never quite recovered from.
Port St. Joe found their leader in underclassman Jayden Reese, who scored 21 points along with six rebounds and three steals. Reese hasn't dropped below three steals for three straight games. Another player making a difference was Elijah Harris, who scored 12 points along with five assists and five rebounds.
Meanwhile, winning is just a little bit easier when you work as a team to rack up 11 more assists than your opponent, a fact Franklin County proved on Tuesday. They blew past Wakulla Christian School, posting a 72-22 win at home. For those curious, yes, that was the biggest win Franklin County has managed all season.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Franklin County to victory, but perhaps none more so than Lonnie O'neal, who scored 14 points along with four steals and two blocks. Sadiq Jones was another key contributor, scoring 14 points along with five rebounds and two steals.
Port St. Joe pushed their record up to 12-12 with that victory, which was their third straight at home. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 65.0 points per game. As for Franklin County, the win makes it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 15-11.
Thursday's contest is shaping up to be a masterclass in shooting: Port St. Joe have been dynamite from deep this season, having made 38.8% of their threes per game. However, it's not like Franklin County struggles in that department as they've made 41.1% of their threes this season. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Port St. Joe couldn't quite finish off Franklin County in their previous meeting two weeks ago and fell 57-54. Can Port St. Joe avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
