Leonard hasn't had much luck against Forest Hill recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Leonard Lancers will square off against the Forest Hill Falcons at 7:30 p.m. Leonard is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 53.5 points per game this season.
Leonard is headed into the matchup out to prove that what happened against Palm Beach Central on Tuesday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Leonard was dealt an 80-40 defeat at the hands of Palm Beach Central. The contest marked the Lancers' lowest-scoring game so far this season.
Leonard's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Bryce Reed, who went 8 for 15 en route to 20 points and seven boards, and Ezekiel (Zeke) Pinquiere, who posted eight points.
Meanwhile, Forest Hill lost a heartbreaker to Santaluces when they met back in December of 2022, and they left with a heavy heart again on Tuesday. Forest Hill took a 51-41 hit to the loss column at the hands of Santaluces. The Falcons have struggled against the Chiefs recently, as the game was their third consecutive lost matchup.
Leonard will need focus on slowing down Angel Ortiz, one of several Forest Hill players who made an impact when they last played. He had 19 points and three steals. That's the most steals Ortiz has posted since back in November of 2024. Tim Grice was another key player, putting up 11 points and eight rebounds.
This is the second loss in a row for Leonard and nudges their season record down to 3-11. As for Forest Hill, their defeat dropped their record down to 8-10.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Leonard has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 24.4 boards per game. However, it's not like Forest Hill struggles in that department as they've been averaging 31.1 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Leonard came up short against Forest Hill when the teams last played back in December of 2024, falling 56-52. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Ortiz, who went 6 of 13 on his way to 20 points. Now that Leonard knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
