Basketball Recap: Crystal River Comes Up Short

If Crystal River was feeling good fresh off their 72-49 takedown of Jefferson two weeks ago, their most recent game may have dampened their spirits a bit. The Crystal River Pirates fell 56-45 to the Springstead Eagles on Wednesday. The Pirates haven't had much luck with the Eagles recently, as the team's come up short the last eight times they've met.

Despite the loss, Crystal River saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Ej Jenkins posted 12 points and eight rebounds. Jenkins has been hot recently, having posted eight or more rebounds the last three times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Gavin Eddings, who put up six points.

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Previous 1 Games

01/08/25 - Away

45-56 L

Even though they lost, Crystal River smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in six consecutive contests.

Springstead had a senior duo take command as Zion McKenzie went 9 of 12 on his way to 21 points and eight steals and Ryan Sayre went 9 of 19 on his way to 28 points. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Sayre has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of Alejandro Arenas, who had two points and ten rebounds.

Crystal River's defeat dropped their record down to 7-6. As for Springstead, they pushed their record up to 8-6 with the victory, which was their third straight at home.

Crystal River wasted no time getting back out on the court and has already played their next game, a 51-42 win against Hudson on the 9th. As for Springstead, they also didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next match, a 58-43 victory against Hernando on the 10th.