Crystal River and Hernando are an even 5-5 against one another since February of 2020, but not for long. The Crystal River Pirates will head out to square off against the Hernando Leopards at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, both will really light up the scoreboard.
Crystal River is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They breezed by Weeki Wachee to the tune of 84-57 on Friday. The Pirates have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won five games by 22 points or more this season.
Crystal River's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Jake Yost, who went 5 of 11 on his way to 17 points and five assists. The team also got some help courtesy of Ej Jenkins, who dropped a double-double on 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Yost wasn't the only one working in the assists department: Crystal River was working as a unit and finished the game with 23 assists. That's the most assists they've posted since back in January of 2024.
Meanwhile, you're bound to get a positive result if you outscore your opponent every quarter, and that's exactly how it played out for Hernando on Monday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that they blew Angeline Academy of Innovation out of the water with a 77-29 final score. The matchup was pretty much decided by the half, when the score had already reached 37-11.
Crystal River better keep an eye on Daniel Merizalde. He was instrumental in Hernando's win, dropping a double-double on 15 points and 11 assists. The dominant performance gave Merizalde a new career-high in assists. Nate Blomberg was another key player, going 5 of 8 on his way to 11 points and five boards.
Crystal River's victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 9-6. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 74.7 points per game. As for Hernando, their record now sits at 12-5.
Crystal River came out on top in a nail-biter against Hernando in their previous matchup back in December of 2024, sneaking past 55-52. The rematch might be a little tougher for Crystal River since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
