Basketball Recap: Winter Park Falls Despite Big Games from Will Ryan and Max Waters

It's hard to turn regular season success into postseason wins, a fact Winter Park can now relate to. They took a 50-39 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Apopka Blue Darters on Monday. The Wildcats were not able to repeat the success they had when they faced the Blue Darters earlier this season, when they won 57-42.

Will Ryan

Three Point Percentage

02/17/25 vs Apopka	100%
02/12/25 vs Lake Brantley	40%
02/07/25 vs University	50%
02/05/25 vs Timber Creek	43%
01/31/25 vs Evans	60%
+ 2 more games

Winter Park's defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of Max Waters, who went 6-for-10 to rack up 16 points, and Will Ryan, who posted 11 points and four steals. Ryan is also on a roll when it comes to three-point shooting accuracy, as he's posted one of at least 40% in the last seven games he's played.

Apopka's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Jermichael Johnson led the charge by putting up 11 points and six rebounds. What's more, Johnson also posted four assists, the most he's had since back in November of 2024. Another player making a difference was Jahi Bowden, who went 7-for-17 on his way to 17 points in addition to six boards and three steals.

Winter Park's loss dropped their record down to 20-8. As for Apopka, the win (which was their fourth in a row) raised their record to 21-7.

Winter Park does not have any more games scheduled as of now. As for Apopka, they will face off against Seminole at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Apopka is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 55 points per game this season.