Basketball Game Preview: Dunnellon Tigers vs. Hernando Leopards

Dunnellon has gone 5-0 against Hernando recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Wednesday. The Dunnellon Tigers will head out to face off against the Hernando Leopards at 7:30 p.m. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.

Dunnellon is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They walked away with a 70-63 win over Palatka on Monday. The victory was a breath of fresh air for the Tigers as it put an end to their three-game losing streak.

Dunnellon's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Eli Nelson led the charge by dropping a double-double on 12 points and 14 rebounds. The dominant performance also gave Nelson a new career-high in blocks (three). Another player making a difference was Tre'Quori Rollerson, who went 6 of 8 en route to 12 points and seven rebounds.

Dunnellon was working as a unit and finished the game with 17 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.

Meanwhile, Hernando waltzed into their match on Tuesday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They blew past the Hornets 70-45. With the Leopards ahead 53-23 at the half, the game was all but over already.

Hernando's win came from a few key players Dunnellon will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Daniel Merizalde, who went 9 of 15 on his way to 20 points and eight assists. The team also got some help courtesy of Michael Brown, who went 6 of 8 on his way to 14 points along with five boards and three blocks.

Hernando's win bumped their record up to 7-2. As for Dunnellon, the victory got them back to even at 3-3.

Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Dunnellon has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 26.8 boards per game. However, it's not like Hernando struggles in that department as they've been averaging 29.8 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.

Dunnellon was able to grind out a solid win over Hernando in their previous meeting back in February of 2022, winning 84-77. The rematch might be a little tougher for Dunnellon since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.