Basketball Game Preview: Forest Park Foresters vs. Poly Engineers

Forest Park hasn't had much luck against Poly recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. The Forest Park Foresters will be home for the holidays to greet the Poly Engineers at 5:15 p.m. Forest Park knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past five matchups -- so hopefully Poly likes a good challenge.

Last Tuesday, everything came up roses for Forest Park against Mergenthaler Vo-Tech as the team secured a 76-13 win. The Foresters have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won four contests by 43 points or more this season.

INDIA WATKINS

Steals

12/17/24 vs Mergenthaler Vo-Tech	3
12/10/24 @ City College	6
12/09/24 vs Randallstown	4
12/06/24 vs Milford Mill Academy	2

Forest Park's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was INDIA WATKINS, who went 6 of 11 on her way to 13 points along with five assists and three steals. WATKINS has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last four times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of MCKENZIE FITZGERALD, who went 6 for 10 en route to 14 points and three steals.

WATKINS wasn't the only one working in the assists department: Forest Park was working as a unit and finished the game with 24 assists. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their assist total in four consecutive games.

Meanwhile, Poly was not able to break out of their rough patch on Tuesday as the team picked up their fourth straight defeat. They might be feeling deja-vu: they lost 65-59 to Western, which was the same score (and result) they got the week prior.

Forest Park's win was their 12th straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 5-0. Those victories came thanks to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 17.5 points per game. As for Poly, their loss ended a seven-game streak of away wins dating back to last season and brought them to 1-4.

Forest Park came up short against Poly in their previous matchup back in December of 2023, falling 49-43. Will Forest Park have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other basketball content.