Two dominant guards in Ny'keria Thomas and Gabi Iturralde are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Mandarin Mustangs will square off against the Tocoi Creek Toros at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Both teams come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
With a playoff game on the line, Mandarin rose to the challenge on Monday. They blew past the Bulldogs, posting a 78-35 victory on the road. Mandarin's offense stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most points they've scored all season.
Mandarin found their leader in underclassman Mia Chandler, who scored 20 points along with seven rebounds and three steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Chandler has scored all season. Another player making a difference was Thomas, who scored 13 points along with seven assists and five rebounds.
Meanwhile, Tocoi Creek waltzed into their matchup on Monday with three straight wins but they left with four. They strolled past Sandalwood with points to spare, taking the game 46-28. Given Tocoi Creek's advantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 84th, while Sandalwood is ranked 431st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Tocoi Creek found their leader in underclassman Audrey Beyer, who scored 21 points along with six rebounds and three blocks. Beyer hasn't dropped below two steals for ten straight games. Mckenzie Mabry was another key contributor, scoring eight points along with five steals and two blocks.
The victory makes it two in a row for Mandarin and bumps their season record up to 11-6. As for Tocoi Creek, they are on a roll lately: they've won 14 of their last 18 matches, which provided a nice bump to their 19-6 record this season.
