New Hanover and Topsail are an even 5-5 against one another since January of 2021, but not for long. After both having extra time off, the two teams will shake off the cobwebs and take on one another at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. New Hanover will be looking to extend their current five-game winning streak.
It was a proper cat-fight when New Hanover duked it out withSouth Brunswick last Friday. New Hanover was the clear victor by a 61-39 margin over South Brunswick. Given the Wildcats' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina basketball rankings (they are ranked 41st, while the Cougars are ranked 244th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
| 11/21/23 vs New Bern | 7 |
| 01/17/25 vs South Brunswick | 6 |
| 01/10/24 vs North Brunswick | 6 |
| 12/12/23 @ Topsail | 6 |
| 01/05/24 @ Ashley | 5 |
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead New Hanover to victory, but perhaps none more so than Brianna Stanley, who posted 12 points along with six boards and four steals. That's the most rebounds Stanley has posted since back in January of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Zirhe Sellers, who almost dropped a double-double on nine points and nine boards.
Meanwhile, Topsail waltzed into their game last Friday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They came out on top against the Scorpions by a score of 40-27.
New Hanover better keep an eye on Riley Trimble. She was instrumental in Topsail's win, going 6 for 11 en route to 16 points in addition to six rebounds and five steals. Trimble is trending in the right direction considering she's improved her point production for three straight games. Another player making a difference was Ava Kita, who earned 14 points and four steals.
Topsail smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 12 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 12 offensive boards in three consecutive matchups.
Topsail has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won seven of their last eight contests, which provided a nice bump to their 11-5 record this season. As for New Hanover, they pushed their record up to 11-4 with the win, which was their fourth straight at home.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: New Hanover has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 31 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Topsail struggles in that department as they've been averaging 32.4 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
New Hanover strolled past Topsail in their previous meeting back in December of 2024 by a score of 57-41. The rematch might be a little tougher for New Hanover since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
