A feisty cat fight will be fought when the Kelvyn Park Panthers challenge the Manley Wildcats at 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday... Both have allowed few points on average, (Kelvyn Park: 16.6, Manley: 20.6) so any points scored will be well earned.
Back in December of 2024, Kelvyn Park was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 22-18 to Foreman.
Meanwhile, Manley had already won eight in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 16.9 points) and they went ahead and made it nine on Monday. They had just enough and edged the Rangers out 41-38. Given the Wildcats' advantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 212th, while the Rangers are ranked 489th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Manley found their leader in sophomore Jaklaya Hunter, who went 12 for 19 on her way to 28 points in addition to six rebounds and six steals. That makes it ten consecutive games in which Hunter has scored at least a third of Manley's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Ja Von Willis, who posted ten points in addition to six boards and three steals.
Manley's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 11-2. The wins came thanks to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 16.7 points per game. As for Kelvyn Park, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost three of their last four contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 4-3 record this season.
Everything went Kelvyn Park's way against Manley in their previous matchup back in December of 2023, as Kelvyn Park made off with a 41-18 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Kelvyn Park since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
