Estero is 0-3 against Gateway since December of 2021 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Thursday. The Estero Wildcats' road trip will continue as they head out to face the Gateway Eagles at 7:00 p.m. on February 15th. Estero will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps Florida Rankings (they are ranked 394th, while Gateway is ranked 109th).
The pair squared off in some playoff action on Saturday, but sadly Estero had to settle for second. They fell 61-49 to the Eagles. Estero has struggled against Gateway recently, as their match on Saturday was their third consecutive lost matchup.
Estero's loss came about despite a quality game from Brady Knutson, who almost dropped a double-double on 26 points and nine rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Drew Arrington, who scored ten points along with six rebounds and two blocks.
Estero struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only two offensive rebounds. They were crushed by their opponents in that department as Gateway pulled down 17 offensive rebounds.
Estero's defeat dropped their record down to 14-13. As for Gateway, the win (which was their fourth in a row) raised their record to 20-3.
Thursday's game is shaping up to be a masterclass in shooting: Estero have been dynamite from deep this season, having made 41.9% of their threes per game. However, it's not like Gateway struggles in that department as they've made 38.7% of their threes this season. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Estero came up short against Gateway when the teams last played on Saturday, falling 61-49. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Gateway's Tavian Cook, who dropped a double-double on 21 points and 14 rebounds. Now that Estero knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
