Wheatley has won ten straight games at home (dating back to last season), while Yates has won ten straight on the road, but those streaks won't matter much on Tuesday. A feisty cat fight will be fought when the Wheatley Wildcats challenge the Yates Lions at 7:15 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Last Friday, Wheatley was fully in charge, breezing past North Forest 61-14. With the Wildcats ahead 43-3 at the half, the contest was all but over already.
| 01/10/25 @ North Forest | 33 |
| 01/08/25 vs Kashmere | 18 |
| 12/28/24 vs Hull-Daisetta | 34 |
It was another big night for Jamie Solomon, who went 8 for 12 from beyond the arc on her way to 33 points and three steals. The match was her third in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Caria Thomas, who almost dropped a triple-double on nine points, nine boards, and nine assists.
Wheatley smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 23 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in 29 consecutive games dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Yates). They really took it to Scarborough for the full four quarters, racking up a 79-9 victory. The Lions pushed the score to 64-9 by the end of the third, a deficit the Spartans had no chance of recovering from.
Yates' win came from a few key players Wheatley will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Karneshia Smith, who almost dropped a double-double on 22 points and nine steals. Smith is crushing it when it comes to steals: she's grabbed at least two every time she's taken the court this season. Taniyah Cooper was another key player, dropping a double-double on 20 points and 18 boards.
Yates has been performing well recently as they've won six of their last eight contests, which provided a nice bump to their 11-6 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 53.5 points per game. As for Wheatley, their win bumped their record up to 16-2.
Keep an eye on the arc in Tuesday's match: Wheatley has been dynamite from deep this season, having made 37.4% of their three-pointers per game. It's a different story for Yates, though, as they've only made 17.3% of their three-pointers this season. Given Wheatley's sizable advantage in that area, Yates will need to find a way to close that gap.
Everything came up roses for Wheatley against Yates when the teams last played back in November of 2024, as the team secured a 77-35 victory. Will Wheatley repeat their success, or does Yates have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
