Basketball Preview: Dunedin Falcons vs. Tarpon Springs Spongers
Dunedin is 2-8 against Tarpon Springs since February of 2018 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Monday. The Dunedin Falcons will square off against the Tarpon Springs Spongers at 7:45 p.m. Dunedin will be strutting in after a victory while Tarpon Springs will be coming in after a loss.
Dunedin is headed into the game after thoroughly thrashing Pinellas Park: they outscored them in every quarter. Dunedin put the hurt on Pinellas Park with a sharp 44-22 win on Thursday. The matchup was all but wrapped up at the end of the third, by which point the Falcons had established a 21 point advantage.
Dunedin's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Brook-Lynn Griffey, who posted 13 points along with five rebounds and three steals. The dominant performance also gave Griffey a new career-high in assists (three). Trinity Clincy was another key player, posting ten points plus seven steals.
Dunedin smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 28 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in 14 consecutive contests dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, Tarpon Springs entered their match against Northeast on Thursday without any home losses, but there's a first time for everything. Tarpon Springs fell just short of Northeast by a score of 31-28. The Spongers have struggled against the Vikings recently, as the game was their sixth consecutive lost matchup.
Tarpon Springs' defeat came about despite a quality game from Hailey Johnson, who earned eight points in addition to four steals. Johnson is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last three games she's played.
Tarpon Springs' loss dropped their record down to 2-2. As for Dunedin, their win bumped their record up to 2-3.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Dunedin has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 35.8 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Tarpon Springs struggles in that department as they've been averaging 29.7. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Everything came up roses for Dunedin against Tarpon Springs in their previous meeting back in December of 2023, as the team secured a 61-15 victory. In that game, Dunedin amassed a halftime lead of 38-6, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Monday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
