Basketball Game Preview: Vero Beach Indians vs. Morningside Academy Eagles

After both having extra time off, the Vero Beach Indians and the Morningside Academy Eagles will dust off their jerseys to face off against one another at 6:30 p.m. on Monday. The two teams each escaped (but just barely!) with wins against their previous opponents.

Vero Beach took a loss when they played away from home back in December of 2024, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed two weeks ago. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 34-31 victory over Treasure Coast. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Indians have posted against the Titans since January 9, 2019.

Vero Beach found their leader in sophomore Ekklesia Anderson, who posted 26 points in addition to six rebounds and three steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Anderson has scored all season. Another player making a difference was Jazmyn Morris, who put up three points and eight rebounds.

Vero Beach smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in four consecutive contests.

Morningside Academy meant business two weeks ago, getting buckets from all over the court against a Rams squad that has allowed just 29.89 points per contest. Morningside Academy came out on top in a nail-biter against John Carroll Catholic, sneaking past 55-53. 55 seems to be a good number for the Eagles as the team scooped up a victory with the same number of points in their previous game.

Morningside Academy's win came from a few key players Vero Beach will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Emmilina Miller, who posted 18 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Arianah Wallace, who had 12 points in addition to seven rebounds and five steals.

Vero Beach's win was their first in the district, bumping their district record up to 1-2 and their overall record up to 2-7. As for Morningside Academy, the victory made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 8-2.