The Fort Walton Beach Vikings will head out on the road to square off against the Pensacola Catholic Crusaders at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. Fort Walton Beach is hoping to put an end to a four-game streak of away losses.
Fort Walton Beach scored the most points they've had all season to find success on Tuesday. They secured a 79-74 W over Crestview. Having run the score up that high, both teams might be doing some extra defensive drills very soon.
Fort Walton Beach's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Justin Lee, who scored 19 points along with two steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Lee has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of XY Childres, who scored 15 points.
Meanwhile, Pensacola Catholic's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Tuesday after their third straight loss. They fell to Pace 28-23. Pensacola Catholic has not had much luck with Pace recently, as the team's come up short the last two times they've met.
Despite the defeat, Pensacola Catholic had strong showings from Jackson Pearson, who scored seven points along with three steals and two blocks, and Solomon Sutton, who scored ten points. That's the first time this season that Pearson posted two or more blocks.
Fort Walton Beach's win ended a three-game drought at home and bumped them up to 6-15. As for Pensacola Catholic, their loss dropped their record down to 4-17.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Fort Walton Beach have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 26.5 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Pensacola Catholic struggles in that department as they've been averaging 26.6 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Fort Walton Beach was able to grind out a solid win over Pensacola Catholic when the teams last played back in November of 2023, winning 61-53. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Sutton, who scored 29 points along with eight rebounds and two steals. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Fort Walton Beach still be able to contain him? There's only one way to find out.
