The Carmel Padres came tearing into Saturday's game with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 11.3 points) and they left with even more momentum. They enjoyed a cozy 61-44 victory over King's Academy. That's two games straight that Carmel has won by exactly 17 points.
Carmel's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Simeon Brown led the charge by scoring 17 points along with nine rebounds and three steals. The matchup was Brown's 11th in a row with at least ten points. Hudson Rutherford was another key contributor, scoring 17 points along with five rebounds.
Despite the loss, King's Academy saw an underclassman step up: Xavier Barnett scored 18 points along with eight rebounds. That's the first time this season that Barnett pulled down eight or more rebounds. Another player making a difference was Bryce Sherman, who scored eight points.
Carmel's victory was their seventh straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 10-1. As for King's Academy, their defeat dropped their record down to 8-3.
Carmel's homestand continues as they prepare to take on Palma at 7:00 p.m. on January 3rd. Palma will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps California Rankings (they are ranked 531st, while Carmel is ranked 125th). As for King's Academy, they will head out on the road to face off against Head-Royce at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. Head-Royce is coming into the game hot, having won their last seven games.
