Preview: Melbourne Central Catholic Hustlers vs. Morningside Academy Eagles
The Melbourne Central Catholic Hustlers will be playing at home against the Morningside Academy Eagles at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Melbourne Central Catholic will be looking to keep their four-game home win streak alive.
It may have taken overtime to finish the job, but Melbourne Central Catholic ultimately got the result they hoped for on Saturday. They narrowly escaped with a victory as the squad sidled past Trinity Christian Academy 37-35. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win Melbourne Central Catholic has posted yet this season.
Melbourne Central Catholic got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Hayden Deane out in front who scored 14 points along with five assists and five rebounds. Deane also posted two blocks for the first time this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Henry Lane, who scored six points along with three steals.
Meanwhile, after a string of three wins, Morningside Academy's good fortune finally ran out on Friday. They fell 60-48 to Jensen Beach.
Despite their defeat, Morningside Academy saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Elijah Clifford, who scored 16 points along with nine rebounds, was perhaps the best of all. Another player making a difference was James Bolton, who scored six points along with ten rebounds.
Even though they lost, Morningside Academy smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 15 offensive rebounds. That's the most offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
Melbourne Central Catholic has been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six games, which provided a nice bump to their 9-2 record this season. As for Morningside Academy, their loss dropped their record down to 11-4.
Keep an eye on the arc in Tuesday's contest: Melbourne Central Catholic have made nailing deep shots look easy this year this season, having only averaged 4.6 threes per game. It's a different story for Morningside Academy, though, as they've been averaging only 5.4 threes per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Melbourne Central Catholic took a serious blow against Morningside Academy in their previous matchup back in January of 2022, falling 71-29. Thankfully for Melbourne Central Catholic, Damon Leigh (who scored 31 points along with six rebounds) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
