Basketball Recap: DJ Clesca Leads a Balanced Attack to Beat Valor Preparatory Academy

There's no place like home for Jackson Day, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Tuesday. They snuck past the Valor Preparatory Academy Owls with a 73-69 victory on Wednesday. This was a revenge game for the Mariners: when they faced off against the Owls last Tuesday, they had to take a 59-58 defeat.

DJ Clesca

Steals (Career)

02/12/25 vs Valor Preparatory Academy	3
12/21/24 vs Langtree Charter Academy	2
02/19/24 @ Lab University Prep National	2
02/11/25 @ Valor Preparatory Academy	1
11/08/24 vs NCSSM: Morganton	1

Jackson Day got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was DJ Clesca out in front who went 7-for-12 en route to 16 points in addition to five boards and three steals. Those three steals gave Clesca a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Makai McKnight, who went 6-for-13 on his way to 20 points.

Jackson Day has been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 6-17 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 70.6 points over those games. As for Valor Preparatory Academy, they have been struggling recently as they've lost seven of their last nine contests, which has put a noticeable dent in their 7-17 record this season.

Coming up, Jackson Day will host Valor Preparatory Academy at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. As for Valor Preparatory Academy, they are taking a road trip to face off against Carolina International at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Valor Preparatory Academy knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past four games -- so hopefully Carolina International likes a good challenge.