Basketball Game Preview: Curtis Baptist Crusaders vs. Holly Hill Academy Raiders

The Curtis Baptist Crusaders will challenge the Holly Hill Academy Raiders at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: both posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.

Last Friday, Curtis Baptist earned a 62-55 victory over Jefferson Davis Academy. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Crusaders.

The match pitted two dominant forwards against one another in Wiltrez (Trez) Mincey and Nasir Void. Mincey had a great game and dropped a double-double on 19 points and 13 rebounds. Meanwhile, Void did his best for the losing side, almost dropping a double-double on 14 points and nine boards.

Meanwhile, even if it wasn't a dominant performance, Holly Hill Academy beat Mead Hall Episcopal School 58-52 on Friday.

Curtis Baptist better keep an eye on Jody Gillam. He was instrumental in Holly Hill Academy's win, going 15 for 29 on his way to 40 points in addition to seven rebounds and three steals. That makes it four consecutive games in which Gillam has scored at least a third of Holly Hill Academy's points. Another player making a difference was Mason Connor, who went 5 of 8 en route to 11 points along with six boards and three steals.

Curtis Baptist's win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 11-9. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 72.0 points per game. As for Holly Hill Academy, their victory bumped their record up to 7-10.

Keep an eye on the arc in Tuesday's matchup: Curtis Baptist has been dynamite from deep this season, having made 42.2% of their three-pointers per game. It's a different story for Holly Hill Academy, though, as they've only made 25.1% of their threes this season. Given Curtis Baptist's sizable advantage in that area, Holly Hill Academy will need to find a way to close that gap.

Curtis Baptist took their win against Holly Hill Academy in their previous matchup back in December of 2023 by a conclusive 53-33. Does Curtis Baptist have another victory up their sleeve, or will Holly Hill Academy turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.