Basketball Game Preview: Lemon Bay Manta Rays vs. First Baptist Academy Lions

The Lemon Bay Manta Rays will venture away from home to challenge the First Baptist Academy Lions at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

On Friday, Lemon Bay came up short against Bishop Verot and fell 55-47. While losing is never fun, the Manta Rays can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 222nd, while the Vikings are ranked 110th).

Meanwhile, First Baptist Academy waltzed into their contest on Friday with six straight wins... but they left with seven. They walked away with a 42-32 victory over the Trojans.

Lemon Bay better keep an eye on Eslynda Bouzi. She was instrumental in First Baptist Academy's win, going 8 of 15 en route to 19 points and five steals. Bouzi is trending in the right direction considering she's improved her point production for four straight games. Another player making a difference was Mia Fitzgerald, who posted three points in addition to eight boards and six steals.

First Baptist Academy smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 12 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in five consecutive matches.

First Baptist Academy pushed their record up to 13-1 with the win, which was their third straight on the road. The wins came thanks to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 26.7 points per game. As for Lemon Bay, they now have a losing record at 6-7.

Lemon Bay skirted past First Baptist Academy 47-45 in their previous matchup back in January of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for Lemon Bay since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.