Basketball Game Preview: The Academy Wildcats vs. Middle Park Panthers

The Academy is 9-1 against Middle Park since February of 2017 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Thursday. A feisty cat fight will be fought as the Wildcats face off against the Panthers at 3:00 p.m. The Academy has been getting the ball to fall more lately as they've increased their point totals each of their last three games.

Last Thursday, The Academy was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 47-43 to Eagle Ridge Academy.

Ashley Aguirre

Rebounds (Career)

02/20/25 vs Eagle Ridge Academy	12
01/07/25 vs Thornton	10
01/27/24 @ Eagle Ridge Academy	7
02/18/25 vs Arrupe Jesuit	6
01/22/25 @ Colorado Academy	6

Despite the loss, The Academy saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Ashley Aguirre almost dropped a double-double with nine points and 12 boards. The dominant performance gave Aguirre a new career-high in rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Megan Baker, who posted nine points.

Meanwhile, Middle Park had already won four in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 31.5 points) and they went ahead and made it five on Tuesday. They were the clear victor by a 48-27 margin over the Pirates. The Panthers pushed the score to 42-16 by the end of the third, a deficit the Pirates cut but never quite recovered from.

Middle Park pushed their record up to 11-9 with the victory, which was their third straight on the road. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 50.3 points over those games. As for The Academy, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost 12 of their last 14 games. That's put a noticeable dent in their 4-17 record this season.

Everything came up roses for The Academy against Middle Park when the teams last played back in February of 2022, as the squad secured a 63-25 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for The Academy since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.