After both having extra time off, the Winter Haven Blue Devils and the Ocoee Knights will dust off their jerseys to challenge one another at 1:00 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with Winter Haven sitting on 17 straight victories and Ocoee on 12.
Winter Haven is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup last Friday. They blew past Venice, posting a 73-31 win. The Blue Devils have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 15 games by 20 points or more this season.
Quin'Nya Gray De Sanders
| 02/21/25 vs Venice | 57% |
| 02/18/25 vs Riverview Sarasota | 78% |
| 02/13/25 vs Sarasota | 67% |
| 02/08/25 vs George Jenkins | 64% |
| 02/06/25 vs Newsome | 63% |
| + 3 more games |
Winter Haven's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Quin'Nya Gray De Sanders, who went 8-for-14 on her way to 17 points and three steals. Gray De Sanders is also on a roll when it comes to shooting accuracy, as she's posted one of at least 50% in the last eight games she's played. Another player making a difference was Serenity Hardy, who posted 19 points and three steals.
Meanwhile, Ocoee hadn't done well against Timber Creek recently (they were 0-3 in their previous three matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way last Friday. Ocoee came out on top against Timber Creek by a score of 49-40.
Ocoee's win came from a few key players Winter Haven will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Dakara Merthie, who dropped a double-double with 25 points and 11 rebounds. The dominant performance gave her a new career-high in boards. The team also got some help courtesy of Gabby Fortius, who dropped a double-double with 20 points and ten rebounds.
Ocoee smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 12 offensive boards. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Timber Creek only four offensive rebounds.
Ocoee's victory bumped their record up to 25-3. As for Winter Haven, their win bumped their record up to 25-2.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Winter Haven has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 26.7 boards per game. However, it's not like Ocoee struggles in that department as they've been averaging 26.8 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more basketball content.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
