Palatka is 3-0 against Eastside since February of 2017, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Thursday. The Palatka Panthers will be playing in front of their home fans against the Eastside Rams at 7:00 p.m. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Palatka waltzed into their match on Thursday with two straight wins but they left with three. They came out on top in a nail-biter against Baker County and snuck past 61-58. Given Palatka's advantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 169th, while Baker County is ranked 414th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Meanwhile, it can be hard to translate regular season success to the playoffs, but Eastside had no problem doing just that on Tuesday. They walked away with a 63-55 victory over the Bulldogs. The win made it back-to-back wins for Eastside.
Eastside's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Davion Pugh, who scored 18 points. Another player making a difference was Jarrel Comer, who dropped a double-double on 15 points and 13 rebounds.
Palatka's victory was their seventh straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 21-4. As for Eastside, their win bumped their record up to 7-16.
Palatka barely slipped by Eastside when the teams last played back in February of 2019, winning 61-60. Does Palatka have another victory up their sleeve, or will Eastside turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
