Bayshore has enjoyed a two-game homestand but will soon have to dust off their road jerseys. They will face off against the Booker Tornadoes at 7:30 p.m. on Monday. Given that both teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this match.
Bayshore pushed their score all the way to 55 on Wednesday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They took a hard 69-55 fall against Palmetto. Bayshore has struggled against Palmetto recently, as their match on Wednesday was their fourth consecutive lost matchup.
Despite the loss, Bayshore got a solid performance out of Demetrios Kimon, who scored 13 points along with six assists and three steals. Those six assists set a new season-high mark for him. William Strawbridge was another key contributor, scoring 15 points along with six rebounds.
Meanwhile, Booker pushed their score all the way to 60 on Friday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They suffered a tough 83-60 defeat at the hands of Braden River. While losing is never fun, Booker can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 419th, while Braden River is ranked 187th).
Despite the defeat, Booker had strong showings from Jovan Palavra, who scored 21 points, and Darius Behn, who scored 18 points. That's the first time this season that Behn scored 15 or more points. Another player making a difference was Kaiden Wright, who scored eight points.
Bayshore has been struggling recently, as they've lost three of their last four matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 4-5 record this season. As for Booker, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 3-6.
Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as the pair are some of the highest scoring teams in the league. Bayshore hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having only averaged 62.8 points per game. It's a different story for Booker, though, as they've been averaging only 59.6 points per game. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can run the score up higher.
Bayshore might still be hurting after the 65-41 defeat they got from Booker when the teams last played back in January. Can Bayshore avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
