Cary is 0-10 against Panther Creek since February of 2019 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Cary Imps will be playing at home against the Panther Creek Catamounts at 6:00 p.m. Cary will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps North Carolina Rankings (they are ranked 367th, while Panther Creek is ranked 43rd).
Cary suffered their biggest loss since December 12, 2023 on Wednesday. They ended up on the wrong side of a rough 62-42 walloping at the hands of Middle Creek. Cary has struggled against Middle Creek recently, as their contest on Wednesday was their third consecutive lost matchup.
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Stone Holcombe, who scored 19 points. Another player making a difference was Bryson Keith, who scored six points.
Meanwhile, Panther Creek put the finishing touches on their eighth blowout victory of the season on Tuesday. They blew past Middle Creek 68-42. The win was familiar territory for Panther Creek who now have six in a row.
Panther Creek's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Cameron Hunter, who dropped a double-double on 12 points and ten rebounds. Hunter hasn't dropped below two steals for five straight games. The team also got some help courtesy of Zy'vaun Puckett, who scored 19 points along with five rebounds and two steals.
Cary dropped their record down to 4-13 with that loss, which was their sixth straight on the road. As for Panther Creek, they have been performing well recently as they've won nine of their last 11 matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 13-4 record this season.
Friday's game is shaping up to be a masterclass in shooting: Cary have been dynamite from deep this season, having made 39% of their threes per game. However, it's not like Panther Creek struggles in that department as they've made 47.6% of their threes per game this season. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Cary took a serious blow against Panther Creek in their previous meeting back in December of 2023, falling 75-39. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Panther Creek's Chris Uwayo, who scored 26 points along with two steals and two blocks. Now that Cary knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
