Preview: Veritas Academy vs. John Paul II Centurions
Veritas Academy has enjoyed a two-game homestand but will soon have to dust off their road jerseys. They will square off against the John Paul II Centurions at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Given that the two teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this game.
Veritas Academy suffered their biggest defeat since November 20, 2023 on Tuesday. They ended up on the wrong side of a tough 76-51 walloping at the hands of Brentwood Christian. While losing is never fun, Veritas Academy can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Texas basketball rankings (they are ranked 1009th, while Brentwood Christian is ranked 494th).
Meanwhile, John Paul II was beaten by Hill Country Christian School of Austin 71-37 on Wednesday. John Paul II has now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
John Paul II's defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of Joseph Mata, who dropped a double-double on 12 points and 14 rebounds, and Eliseo Garcia who scored 16 points along with three steals. Mata hasn't dropped below eight rebounds for 13 straight games.
Veritas Academy's defeat was their third straight at home, which dropped their record down to 13-12. As for John Paul II, they have been struggling recently, as they've lost eight of their last nine matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 13-20 record this season.
Everything went Veritas Academy's way against John Paul II in their previous matchup back in January of 2023 as Veritas Academy made off with a 72-51 victory. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was John Paul II's Ethan Miranda, who scored 23 points along with seven rebounds and six assists. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be that much easier for Veritas Academy to walk away with another win? There's only one way to find out.
