Basketball Recap: Make It Four in a Row for Merit Preparatory Academy

Merit Preparatory Academy had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 58.7 points) and they went ahead and made it four on Friday. They skirted past the American Prep WV Eagles 68-66. For the Knights, this counts as revenge for the 84-52 victory the Eagles walked away with the last time they faced one another back in January of 2024.

Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Merit Preparatory Academy to victory, but perhaps none more so than Ayden Martinez, who dropped a double-double on 19 points and ten boards. That's the most boards Martinez has posted since back in January of 2024. Another player making a difference was Michigan Draper, who almost dropped a double-double on nine points and nine assists.

Merit Preparatory Academy was working as a unit and finished the game with 16 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as American Prep WV only racked up six assists.

Despite the loss, American Prep WV saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Chris Monroy went 7 of 15 on his way to 18 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Judo Oman, who posted nine points and eight rebounds.

Merit Preparatory Academy's win ended a three-game drought on the road and puts them at 7-4. As for American Prep WV, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 4-5.

Merit Preparatory Academy didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next match, a 71-44 victory against Salt Lake Academy on the 7th. As for American Prep WV, they also wasted no time getting back out on the court and have already played their next game, a 71-54 win against Vanguard Academy on the 6th.