Merit Preparatory Academy is 9-1 against Freedom Prep Academy since December of 2019, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The Merit Preparatory Academy Knights will head out on the road to challenge the Freedom Prep Academy Eagles at 7:00 p.m. Given that the two teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this contest.
Merit Preparatory Academy struggled with assists on Wednesday (Rockwell had 14 more) and sadly the final score reflected it. Merit Preparatory Academy took a serious blow against Rockwell, falling 71-34. Merit Preparatory Academy was in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 38-15.
Despite the defeat, Merit Preparatory Academy had strong showings from Cruz Steinman, who dropped a double-double on 11 points and 12 rebounds, and Allan Mendonca, who dropped a double-double on ten points and 13 rebounds. It was the first time this season that Steinman pulled down eight or more rebounds. Another player making a difference was Michigan Draper, who scored five points.
Meanwhile, Freedom Prep Academy came up short against Utah Military Academy - Camp Williams on Wednesday and fell 47-35. Freedom Prep Academy has struggled against Utah Military Academy - Camp Williams recently, as their contest on Wednesday was their third consecutive lost matchup.
Merit Preparatory Academy's defeat dropped their record down to 7-14. As for Freedom Prep Academy, they dropped their record down to 3-14 with that loss, which was their eighth straight at home.
Merit Preparatory Academy didn't have too much breathing room in their match against Freedom Prep Academy in their previous meeting back in January, but they still walked away with a 68-62 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Merit Preparatory Academy since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
