Basketball Game Preview: Circle Christian Centurions vs. The First Academy Royals

Circle Christian hasn't had much luck against The First Academy recently, but that could start to change on Monday. The Circle Christian Centurions will face off against The First Academy Royals at 7:00 p.m. One thing working in Circle Christian's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last three matches.

Last Friday, Circle Christian was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 72-68 to Family Christian Academy. Despite running the score up even higher than they did in their prior game on Tuesday (64), the Centurions still had to take the loss.

Lucas Valdes

Points

01/31/25 vs Family Christian Academy	19
01/28/25 vs Father Lopez	21
01/27/25 @ Lake Mary Prep	19

Despite the defeat, Circle Christian got top-tier performance from Lucas Valdes, who went 9 of 17 on his way to 19 points and three steals. Valdes' evening made it three games in a row in which he has scored at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Josiah Dullmeyer, who posted 15 points.

Even though they lost, Circle Christian smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 18 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive rebounds in three consecutive contests.

Meanwhile, after a string of three wins, The First Academy's good fortune finally ran out on Friday. They took a 58-50 hit to the loss column at the hands of Viera.

Circle Christian's loss dropped their record down to 3-17. As for The First Academy, their defeat ended a nine-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 15-7.

Circle Christian couldn't quite finish off The First Academy in their previous matchup back in January of 2017 and fell 2-0. Can Circle Christian avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.