Munroe is 9-1 against St. John Paul II since January of 2022 and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Tuesday. A feisty cat fight is on tap when the Munroe Bobcats challenge the St. John Paul II Panthers at 7:00 p.m. Munroe knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past three matchups -- so hopefully St. John Paul II likes a good challenge.
Munroe will head into Saturday's game after some sweet revenge against Gadsden County: Munroe lost a heartbreaker the last time they played Gadsden County, but it's fair to say they got their revenge given the result of 6's contest. Munroe simply couldn't be stopped on Saturday as they easily beat Gadsden County 75-45. The match was all but wrapped up at the end of the third, by which point the Bobcats had established a 20 point advantage.
| 01/25/25 vs Gadsden County | 3 |
| 01/18/25 @ Gadsden County | 2 |
| 01/14/25 vs St. John Paul II | 2 |
| 01/11/25 @ Crossroad Academy | 2 |
| 01/09/25 vs Sneads | 2 |
Zelden Chukes was his usual excellent self, dropping a double-double on 18 points and 11 rebounds. He is also on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed two or more in the last 11 games he's played. Another player making a difference was Kejuan Nealy, who almost dropped a double-double on nine points and ten boards.
Munroe smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 21 offensive boards. That's the most offensive rebounds they've posted since back in December of 2024.
Meanwhile, St. John Paul II was not able to break out of their rough patch last Thursday as the team picked up their eighth straight defeat. They took a 59-50 hit to the loss column at the hands of Godby. While losing is never fun, the Panthers can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 385th, while the Cougars are ranked 85th).
Munroe will have to contain Mario Forbes as he made an impact in St. John Paul II's last game. He dropped a double-double on 24 points and 19 rebounds. That was a full 48% of St. John Paul II's points, marking the fourth time in a row he's posted more than a third of the team's points. Aaron Nixon was another key player, putting up six points and five boards.
Munroe pushed their record up to 14-7 with the victory, which was their fourth straight at home. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 66.5 points per game. As for St. John Paul II, their loss dropped their record down to 7-11.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Munroe has been crashing the rebounds this season, having averaged 33.7 boards per game. However, it's not like St. John Paul II struggles in that department as they've been averaging 35.7 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Munroe beat St. John Paul II 59-52 when the teams last played two weeks ago. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Forbes, who dropped a double-double on 18 points and 21 boards. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Munroe still be able to contain Forbes? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
