The Fillmore Central Panthers will square off against the Thayer Central Titans at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Fillmore Central knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past eight matches -- so hopefully Thayer Central likes a good challenge.
Fillmore Central is headed into the game after thoroughly thrashing Sutton: they outscored them in every quarter. Fillmore Central came out on top against Sutton by a score of 60-47 on Friday. The win continues a trend for the Panthers in their matchups with the Mustangs: they've now won five in a row.
Fillmore Central's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Daniel Stoner, who went 10-for-13 on his way to 23 points and five rebounds. Kiffin Theobald was another key player, going 5-for-10 to rack up 13 points along with five boards and three steals.
Meanwhile, Thayer Central suffered their closest defeat since January 25th on Thursday. They fell just short of Southern by a score of 49-46.
Fillmore Central will have to contain Sam Souerdyke as he made an impact in Thayer Central's last game. He posted 20 points in addition to seven rebounds and four steals. That was a full 43.5% of Thayer Central's points, marking the fifth time in a row Souerdyke has earned more than a third of the team's points. Another player making a difference was David Johnson, who put up six points and nine boards.
Even though they lost, Thayer Central smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in three consecutive contests.
Fillmore Central pushed their record up to 18-4 with the win, which was their third straight at home. As for Thayer Central, their loss ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 15-6.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Fillmore Central has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 29.7 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Thayer Central struggles in that department as they've been averaging 25 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Fillmore Central was able to grind out a solid victory over Thayer Central in their previous matchup last Saturday, winning 58-49. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Souerdyke, who dropped a double-double with 28 points and 17 rebounds. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Fillmore Central still be able to contain Souerdyke? There's only one way to find out.
