A feisty cat fight will be fought as the Panthers take on the Wildcats at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. The squads are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Lincoln County has struggled recently with three losses in a row, while Nitro will arrive with three straight victories.
Last Tuesday, Lincoln County lost to Buffalo on the road by a 66-50 margin.
Arien Cooper
| 02/18/25 @ Buffalo | 23 |
| 02/04/25 @ Grace Christian | 17 |
| 12/10/24 vs Riverside | 17 |
| 02/13/25 vs Scott | 15 |
| 01/16/25 @ Scott | 13 |
Despite their defeat, Lincoln County saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Arien Cooper, who dropped a double-double with 11 points and 23 rebounds, was perhaps the best of all. The dominant performance gave Cooper a new career-high in boards. The team also got some help courtesy of Brooklyn Stickler, who posted seven points and seven steals.
Even though they lost, Lincoln County smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 20 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 14 offensive rebounds in five consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, Nitro faced Wheeling Park in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Saturday. Nitro came out on top against Wheeling Park by a score of 68-57. That's two games straight that the Wildcats have won by exactly 11 points.
Nitro's win came from a few key players Lincoln County will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Natalie Smith, who dropped a double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds. She is also on a roll when it comes to blocks, as she's now posted two or more in each of the last three games she's played. Mika Adams was another key player, going 6-for-9 to rack up 18 points.
Nitro pushed their record up to 15-3 with the win, which was their 22nd straight at home dating back to last season. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 59.8 points over those games. As for Lincoln County, their loss dropped their record down to 3-17.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Lincoln County has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 35.1 boards per game. However, it's not like Nitro struggles in that department as they've been averaging 30.2 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Lincoln County came up short against Nitro when the teams last played back in March of 2020, falling 78-69. Thankfully for Lincoln County, Baylee Goins (who went 6-for-11 from beyond the arc on her way to 45 points in addition to seven boards and four steals) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
