Lake Minneola is 0-3 against The Villages Charter since December of 2019 but things could change on Thursday. Both will compete for holiday cheer at 7:30 p.m. Each of these teams will be battling to keep a six-game winning streak alive.
Lake Minneola will bounce into Thursday's match after beating West Orange, who they had gone 0-3 against in their three prior meetings. Everything went Lake Minneola's way against West Orange on Tuesday as Lake Minneola made off with a 70-48 victory. Given the Hawks' advantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 145th, while the Warriors are ranked 485th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
| 12/17/24 vs West Orange | 20 |
| 12/16/24 @ Horizon | 22 |
| 12/14/24 vs Cocoa | 22 |
| 12/12/24 vs Cypress Creek | 25 |
| 12/10/24 @ Leesburg | 20 |
| 12/06/24 @ South Lake | 26 |
Lake Minneola's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Brandon Colbert, who made all 8 shots he took for 20 points and five assists. Colbert's evening made it six games in a row in which he has scored at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Tyrell Thomas, who went 6 of 11 on his way to 15 points and eight rebounds.
Lake Minneola smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in six consecutive games.
Meanwhile, The Villages Charter earned a 68-58 victory over Cedar Grove on Saturday.
The Villages Charter's win came from a few key players Lake Minneola will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Adyn Corbin, who dropped a double-double on 18 points and ten boards. With that strong performance, he is now averaging an impressive 15.1 points per game. The team also got some help courtesy of Aaron Britt, Jr., who went 10 of 19 on his way to 24 points.
The Villages Charter's win bumped their record up to 8-1. As for Lake Minneola, their victory bumped their record up to 8-3.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Lake Minneola has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 23.5 rebounds per game. However, it's not like The Villages Charter struggles in that department as they've been averaging 31.9 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Lake Minneola suffered a grim 58-33 defeat to The Villages Charter in their previous meeting back in January of 2021. Thankfully for Lake Minneola, Tre Mann (who posted 17 points and four steals) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
