Basketball Game Preview: Winter Haven Blue Devils vs. St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders

Having just played yesterday, the Winter Haven Blue Devils will jump right back in to play the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders at 3:40 p.m. on Saturday. Winter Haven is coming into the game hot, having won their last nine games.

Winter Haven is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Florida's top teams: Miami Country Day, who was ranked ninth at the time (Winter Haven was ranked third). Winter Haven managed a 57-52 victory over Miami Country Day on Friday.

Serenity Hardy was her usual excellent self, putting up 24 points and four steals. She is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last four games she's played. Another player making a difference was Jaeden Williams, who posted nine points and four steals.

Meanwhile, St. Thomas Aquinas waltzed into their match on Friday with five straight wins... but they left with six. They took their contest with ease, bagging a 74-41 win over the Wolfpack. The Raiders have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won seven games by 22 points or more this season.

St. Thomas Aquinas has also been performing well recently as they've won seven of their last nine matches, which provided a nice bump to their 12-6 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 62.2 points per game. As for Winter Haven, their victory bumped their record up to 17-2.

Winter Haven was dealt a bruising 65-37 loss at the hands of St. Thomas Aquinas in their previous matchup back in December of 2019. Can Winter Haven avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.