The Crooms Academy Panthers will take on the Elite Prep Academy Eagles at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. Crooms Academy is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 60.4 points per game this season.
Having struggled with four defeats in a row, Crooms Academy turned things around against Burns Sci-Tech on Friday. They took down the Eagles 67-52. The high-flying offensive performance was a huge turnaround for the Panthers considering their 30-point performance the game before.
Graydon Gilllum
| 01/23/26 vs Burns Sci-Tech | 8 |
| 01/21/26 @ Winter Springs | 3 |
| 01/20/26 vs Space Coast | 4 |
| 01/16/26 vs Innovation | 2 |
| 01/13/26 vs Cocoa Beach | 7 |
| + 19 more games |
Crooms Academy's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Graydon Gilllum, who dropped a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. What's more, Gilllum racked up eight assists, the most he's had since back in January of 2025. Another player making a difference was Zayn Abounnaim, who posted 20 points and three steals.
Crooms Academy was working as a unit and finished the game with 17 assists. They are 9-4 when they've passed the ball that well.
Meanwhile, Elite Prep Academy was not able to break out of their rough patch on Tuesday as the team picked up their sixth straight loss. They were five points away from ending the streak, but they lost a 46-41 heartbreaker at the hands of Calvary City Christian Academy.
Crooms Academy will need to focus on slowing down Geramel Castillo, one of several Elite Prep Academy players who made an impact when they last played. He shot 50% from the field en route to 20 points and four steals. That was a full 48.8% of Elite Prep Academy's points, marking the third time in a row Castillo has scored more than a third of the team's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Fenick Noel, who put up eight points along with seven boards and four steals.
Elite Prep Academy's defeat dropped their record down to 3-6. As for Crooms Academy, their win bumped their record up to 9-11.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Crooms Academy has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 36.6 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Elite Prep Academy struggles in that department as they've been averaging 28 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Crooms Academy came up short against Elite Prep Academy in their previous meeting back in December of 2024, falling 53-48. Thankfully for the Panthers, Kirk Duhaney (who went 7-for-11 to rack up 25 points in addition to seven blocks and five 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.
