Forest is 0-3 against Hawthorne since November of 2019 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Thursday. The Forest Wildcats are on the road again and play against the Hawthorne Hornets at 7:30 p.m. on December 14th. Both teams come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Last Tuesday, everything came up roses for Forest on the road against Lake Weir as the team secured a 66-19 victory. Given Forest's advantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 174th, while Lake Weir is ranked 618th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Forest found their leader in underclassman Jessica Colon, who scored 14 points along with six rebounds. Colon set a new season high mark in steals with two. Taleah Jones was another key contributor, scoring nine points along with six rebounds.
Meanwhile, Hawthorne had already won nine in a row dating back to last season (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 17.7 points), and they went ahead and made it ten on Tuesday. They really took it to The Rock for the full four quarters, racking up a 71-42 win at home. The game was pretty much decided by the half, when the score had already reached 38-17.
Among those leading the charge was Jhalea Jackson, who dropped a double-double on 14 points and 14 rebounds. Another player making a difference was Zakena Ealy, who scored 14 points along with five steals.
Forest's victory was their fifth straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 6-4. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 58.8 points per game. As for Hawthorne, their win bumped their record up to 1-0.
Thursday's contest is shaping up to be a masterclass in shooting: Forest have been dynamite from deep this season, having nailed 64% of their threes per game. However, it's not like Hawthorne struggles in that department as they've nailed 44% of their threes per game this season. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Forest lost to Hawthorne on the road by a decisive 56-39 margin in their previous meeting back in January. Thankfully for Forest, Jaz?lyn Jackson (who dropped a double-double on 20 points and 11 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.
