Basketball Preview: Crescent City Raiders vs. Crooms Academy Panthers
The Crescent City Raiders will face off against the Crooms Academy Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Crescent City has now lost eight straight, and the team is hunting for their first win since January 8.
Crescent City lost a heartbreaker when they last took the court, but unfortunately for them the loss they were handed on on Monday was a bit more commanding. They were dealt a 83-50 defeat at the hands of Tocoi Creek. While losing is never fun, Crescent City can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 651st, while the Toros are ranked 185th).
Meanwhile, Crooms Academy came up short against the Panthers on Thursday and fell 55-46. Crooms Academy has struggled against the Panthers recently, as their matchup on Thursday was their third consecutive lost matchup.
Despite the loss, Crooms Academy saw an underclassman step up: Jayden Aristile scored 20 points along with three steals. Aristile is on a roll when it comes to points, as he's now scored 17 or more in the last three games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Tyrell Johnson, who scored seven points along with nine rebounds and three steals.
Crescent City dropped their record down to 4-17 with that defeat, which was their seventh straight at home. That rough patch can't be blamed on the team's offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 54.3 points per game. As for Crooms Academy, they now have a losing record at 9-10.
Crescent City came up short against the Panthers in their previous meeting back in February of 2022, falling 64-53. Thankfully for Crescent City, Rashad Rose (who dropped a double-double on 24 points and ten rebounds) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
