The East Duplin Panthers and the Princeton Bulldogs will compete for holiday cheer at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. East Duplin is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 54.8 points per game this season.
It was a proper cat-fight when East Duplin challenged Hobbton on Friday. East Duplin enjoyed a cozy 52-36 win over Hobbton. The Panthers pushed the score to 43-19 by the end of the third, a deficit the Wildcats cut but never quite recovered from.
East Duplin got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Calvin Harper out in front who went 7 of 14 en route to 21 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Mason Whaley, who posted ten points and six rebounds.
Meanwhile, the third road game was the charm for Princeton, as they earned their first road win of the season. They secured a 60-56 W over Southside on Thursday.
Princeton's win came from a few key players East Duplin will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Garrett Lane, who went 8 of 16 on his way to 21 points. That makes it three consecutive games in which he has scored at least a third of Princeton's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Evan Pate, who dropped a double-double on ten points and 11 rebounds.
The win made it two in a row for East Duplin and bumps their season record up to 3-1. As for Princeton, the victory was their first on the road , bumping their record up to 4-5.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: East Duplin has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 25 boards per game. However, it's not like Princeton struggles in that department as they've been averaging 34.3 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
East Duplin came up short against Princeton in their previous matchup back in December of 2023, falling 57-53. Thankfully for East Duplin, Denicholas Gray (who went 7 of 13 on his way to 15 points along with six steals and three blocks) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
