The Winfield Generals will be home for the holidays to greet the Nitro Wildcats at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both teams come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Winfield scored the most points they've had all season to find success on Tuesday. They walked away with a 57-46 win over Poca. Winning is a bit easier when you outrebound your opponent 19 to 11 on the offensive boards, as Winfield did.
Winfield got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Ashlee Johnson out in front who scored ten points along with nine rebounds. That's the first time this season that Johnson pulled down eight or more rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Kaitlyn Sayre, who scored six points along with six rebounds and three steals.
Meanwhile, Nitro faced St. Albans in a battle between two of the state's top teams. Nitro managed a 46-40 win over St. Albans on Monday. The victory made it back-to-back wins for Nitro.
Nitro can attribute much of their success to Karson Jones, who scored 11 points along with nine rebounds, and Natalie Smith, who scored 15 points along with eight rebounds. That's the first time this season that Smith pulled down eight or more rebounds.
The win got Winfield back to even at 2-2. As for Nitro, their victory ended a four-game drought at home dating back to last season and bumped them up to 3-1.
Friday's contest is shaping up to be a scrappy contest: Winfield have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 29 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Nitro struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 33.2 rebounds per game. Given Winfield's sizeable advantage in that area, Nitro will need to find a way to close that gap.
Winfield skirted past Nitro 44-42 in their previous matchup back in February. Does Winfield have another victory up their sleeve, or will Nitro turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
