The Springstead Eagles will look to defend their home court on Monday against the Dunnellon Tigers at 6:00 p.m. Given that both teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this matchup.
Last Thursday, it was a hard-fought game, but Springstead had to settle for a 41-38 defeat against Lecanto. While losing is never fun, Springstead can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 258th, while Lecanto is ranked 74th).
Despite their defeat, Springstead saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Samantha Suarez, who scored 11 points along with 7 rebounds and 5 assists, was perhaps the best of all. Suarez scored a full 28.9% of Springstead's points, the second time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points. Another player making a difference was Malanie Francis, who scored 9 points along with 13 rebounds.
Meanwhile, Dunnellon unfortunately witnessed the end of their three-game winning streak on Saturday. They fell to Gainesville 61-57. Having run the score up that high, both teams probably have some extra defensive drills coming up.
Defeat or not, Dunnellon got some senior leadership from Tatiana Matthews who scored 32 points along with 6 rebounds and 6 steals and Princess Hardin who scored 21 points along with 7 rebounds. The matchup was Matthews' fourth in a row with at least ten points.
Their wins bumped Springstead to 2-2 and Lecanto to 3-0.
Keep an eye on the arc in Monday's contest: Springstead have been dynamite from deep this season, having made 38.5% of their threes per game. However, it's not like Dunnellon struggles in that department as they've only nailed 32% of theirs this season. Given Springstead's sizeable advantage in that area, Dunnellon will need to find a way to close that gap. Come back here after the game to get analysis of the match and other basketball content.
Springstead lost to Dunnellon at home by a decisive 58-39 margin in their previous meeting back in November of 2014. Will Springstead have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more basketball content.