Basketball Recap: Dai'zjhon Blackman's Big Game Can't Quite Lead Celebration over Bayside

Celebration fought the good fight in their overtime matchup against Bayside on Wednesday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell 80-71 to the Bayside Bears. The Storm were not able to repeat the success they had when they faced the Bears earlier this season, when they won 72-68.

Celebration's defeat came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Dai'Zjhon Blackman, who posted 19 points and eight rebounds. Another player making a difference was Edson Oliveira Da Silva, who went 6 of 8 en route to 15 points.

Storm

Assists

01/08/25 @ Bayside	18
12/28/24 vs Palmetto Ridge	15
12/21/24 vs Jackson County	12
12/27/24 @ Mount Dora Christian Academy	10
01/07/25 vs Tohopekaliga	8

Even though they lost, Celebration was working as a unit and finished the game with 18 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.

Leading Bayside to victory were Elijah Gillis and Omar Clarke. Gillis went 6 of 10 from beyond the arc on his way to 28 points, while Clarke went 11 of 18 on his way to 24 points along with seven boards and three steals. The contest was Clarke's fourth in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Mason Derrickson, who had ten points.

Celebration's loss was their fourth straight on the road, which dropped their record down to 8-8. As for Bayside, the victory was the fifth in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 10-3.

Both squads are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Celebration will face off against City of Life Christian Academy at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Celebration is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 52.6 points per game this season. As for Bayside, they will be taking part in a tournament against Palm Bay at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Bayside knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past four games -- so hopefully Palm Bay likes a good challenge.