Basketball Recap: Cardinal Mooney Falls Short of Tampa Catholic in the Playoffs

Cardinal Mooney and Tampa Catholic squared off in some playoff action on Wednesday, but Cardinal Mooney had to settle for second. They took a hard 69-52 fall against the Tampa Catholic Crusaders. The Cougars have struggled against the Crusaders recently, as the game was their ninth consecutive lost matchup.

Malakai Cuffy

Field Goal Percentage

02/05/25 vs Tampa Catholic	55%
02/03/25 vs Winthrop College Prep Academy	42%
01/30/25 vs Gulf Coast HEAT	42%
01/29/25 vs Riverview Sarasota	60%
01/27/25 vs Admiral Farragut	20%
+ 22 more games

Cardinal Mooney's loss came despite strong showings from Malakai Cuffy and Jamaal George. Cuffy went 6 for 11 on his way to 14 points and five assists, while George went 5 of 12 en route to 14 points. Thanks to that strong game, Cuffy now owns an excellent 45.3% field goal percentage. The team also got some help courtesy of Sam Reindel, who posted eight points and 12 rebounds.

Tampa Catholic's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Isaiah Campbell-Finch led the charge by going 5 for 10 to rack up 16 points and five assists. Campbell-Finch is also on a roll when it comes to shooting accuracy, as he's posted one of at least 45% in the last three games he's played. Another player making a difference was Willie Piggott, who went 5 of 11 on his way to 14 points.

Cardinal Mooney's loss dropped their record down to 24-3. As for Tampa Catholic, they are on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last eight contests, which provided a massive bump to their 18-9 record this season.

Cardinal Mooney does not have any more games scheduled as of now. As for Tampa Catholic, they wasted no time getting back out on the court and have already played their next game, a 61-56 win against Berkeley Prep on the 7th.