Smithville and Caledonia are an even 4-4 against one another since November of 2014, but not for long. The Smithville Seminoles will be playing in front of their home fans against the Caledonia Cavaliers at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday.
Last Tuesday, Smithville was beaten by Starkville Academy 52-25. While losing is never fun, Smithville can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Mississippi basketball rankings (they are ranked 246th, while Starkville Academy is ranked 71st).
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Mary Haley Hood, who scored nine points along with six rebounds. She scored a full 36% of Smithville's points, the fourth time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Sophie Hass, who scored seven points.
Meanwhile, Caledonia humbled West Lowndes with a 58-17 victory. For those curious, yes, that was the biggest victory Caledonia has managed all season.
Smithville has been struggling recently, as they've lost four of their last five matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 4-7 record this season. As for Caledonia, they now have a winning record of 3-2.
Smithville came out on top in a nail-biter against Caledonia in their previous meeting back in December of 2020, sneaking past 46-43. Will Smithville repeat their success, or does Caledonia have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
