The Everett Warriors and the Portage Mustangs will round out the year against one another at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday at. Both teams are coming into the matchup red-hot, with Everett sitting on four straight wins and Portage on ten.
Last Wednesday, everything went Everett's way against Meyersdale as Everett made off with a 53-33 win. Given Everett's advantage in MaxPreps' Pennsylvania basketball rankings (they are ranked 207th, while Meyersdale is ranked 419th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Everett relied on the efforts of Jade Colledge, who scored 13 points along with three steals, and Cloe Price, who scored 19 points along with six rebounds. Price is absolutely dominating the steal category: she's posted at least two every time she's taken the court this season. Morgan Bowser was another key contributor, scoring seven points along with four steals.
Portage has made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won five matchups by 21 points or more this season. They blew past Conemaugh Township 52-31.
Jenna Burkett was her usual excellent self, scoring 19 points along with seven rebounds and three steals. The match was her seventh in a row with at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Cami Burkett, who scored seven points along with six assists and three steals.
Everett's victory was their fourth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 4-2. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 52.3 points per game. As for Portage, their win bumped their record up to 10-0.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Everett have been smashing the glass this season, having only averaged 33.7 rebounds per game. It's a different story for Portage, though, as they've been averaging only 33.4 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Everett lost to Portage on the road by a decisive 54-35 margin when the teams last played back in December of 2021. Thankfully for Everett, Maryn Swank (who dropped a double-double on 14 points and 15 rebounds) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
