Basketball Game Preview: Destin Sharks vs. North Bay Haven Academy Buccaneers

The Destin Sharks will head out to challenge the North Bay Haven Academy Buccaneers at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday. Destin is coming into the contest on a four-game losing streak.

Destin came up short against Rocky Bayou Christian on Tuesday, falling 54-33. While losing is never fun, the Sharks can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 511th, while the Knights are ranked 170th).

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask North Bay Haven Academy). They took their matchup on Tuesday with ease, bagging a 66-25 victory over Port St. Joe. The game was all but wrapped up at the end of the third, by which point the Buccaneers had established a 37 point advantage.

Destin better keep an eye on Kaylee Goodpaster. She was instrumental in North Bay Haven Academy's win, dropping a double-double on 38 points and ten steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Paicey Millirons, who posted eight points along with six steals and four blocks.

North Bay Haven 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 contests.

North Bay Haven Academy's win ended a ten-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 8-6. As for Destin, their loss dropped their record down to 2-10.

Destin came up short against North Bay Haven Academy when the teams last played back in December of 2024, falling 46-38. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Goodpaster, who almost dropped a double-double on 21 points and nine steals. Now that Destin knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.