The DME Academy Blue - will take on the Cocoa Tigers in a holiday battle at at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. The teams are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: DME Academy Blue has struggled recently with seven losses in a row, while Cocoa will arrive with three straight victories.
Last Sunday, DME Academy Blue ended up a good deal behind Winston Salem Christian National and lost 57-42. While losing is never fun, the - can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 317th in Florida, while the Lions are ranked first in North Carolina).
Meanwhile, Cocoa beat Deltona 48-36 on Friday.
DME Academy Blue better keep an eye on Ty Blackmon. She was instrumental in Cocoa's win, putting up 14 points in addition to five boards and three steals. That's the most points Blackmon has posted since back in January. The team also got some help courtesy of Sophia Bass, who posted ten points and five rebounds.
Cocoa smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 19 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in 14 consecutive matchups dating back to last season.
Cocoa's win bumped their record up to 9-1. As for DME Academy Blue, their defeat dropped their record down to 0-6.
DME Academy Blue opened the new year with a less-than-successful 49-42 loss to Cocoa. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Cocoa's Gianna Conklin-Jones, who went 9 of 17 on her way to 25 points along with six rebounds and three steals. Now that DME Academy Blue knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
