Basketball Game Preview: Gulliver Prep Raiders vs. Mater Brickell Academy Bulls

The Gulliver Prep Raiders will face off against the Mater Brickell Academy Bulls at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. Gulliver Prep knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past four matchups -- so hopefully Mater Brickell Academy likes a good challenge.

On Thursday, Gulliver Prep needed a bit of extra time to put away Florida Christian. They pulled ahead with a 55-54 photo finish over the Patriots.

It was another big night for Jacob Marquez, who went 7 for 12 en route to 20 points and five assists. That makes it three consecutive games in which he has scored at least a third of Gulliver Prep's points. Another player making a difference was Champ Smith, who went 5 of 7 on his way to 12 points and three steals.

Meanwhile, after some red-hot attacks on offense in their last three contests, Mater Brickell Academy finally came back down to earth on Wednesday. They were outmatched by Doral Academy and fell 77-27. While losing is never fun, the Bulls can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 639th, while the Firebirds are ranked 171st).

Gulliver Prep's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 11-6. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 63.3 points per game. As for Mater Brickell Academy, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost five of their last six games, which put a noticeable dent in their 5-13 record this season.