Top 5 Games To Watch: Week 9

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Every Monday during the high school basketball season, the Prep Hoops Florida staff preview the top matchups for the upcoming week. This week is no different, as we have some great matchups in store across the state. Check out which five intriguing matchups are catching our eye this week.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Berkeley Prep at Seffner Christian- Tuesday at 7:30pm: </strong>The Berkeley Prep Buccaneers (13-2) come into this matchup on a 4-game winning streak and are currently ranked No. 6 in Class 3A, according to the latest MaxPreps' rankings. The Buccaneers have been getting contributions from 6'1 senior guard George Kimble, 5'11 junior guard Evan Hellman and 6'1 senior small forward Damien Henderson during the streak. On the other side, the Seffner Christian Academy Crusaders (13-5) come into play tonight on a modest two-game winning streak after losing their previous 3. The Crusaders have been led by 6'3 sophomore guard Malik Sosa who is averaging a team best 17.1 points and 2.8 rebounds per game. Another name to keep an eye on will be 6'1 junior guard Cameron Knox who is averaging 14.1 points per game this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Dwyer at Martin County- Wednesday at 7:15pm: </strong>The Dwyer Panthers (16-0) are rolling as we are nearing the final three weeks of the season as they currently sit ranked No. 26 in the nation, according to MaxPreps. Keep an eye on 6'5 senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1060179' first='Mason' last='Brown'] for the Panthers as he leads the team averaging 14.9 points and 6.5 rebounds per game this season. On the other side, the Martin County Tigers (11-5) come into this game on a 2-game winning streak since their heartbreaking 72-71 loss to St. Petersburg back on January 7. Keep an eye on 6'4 junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1306059' first='Elijah' last='Duval'] in this one as he's averaging a team best 20.4 points and 5.7 rebounds per game this season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Oak Ridge at Tampa Catholic- Wednesday at 7:30pm: </strong>The Oak Ridge Pioneers (12-6) will look to bounce back after losing 92-84 to Olympia last night, where Cincinnati commit Jizzle James scored a season-high 45 points for the Titans. Keep an eye on 6'5 junior forward [player_tooltip player_id='1055776' first='Tyler' last='Johnson'] for Oak Ridge as he's averaging a team best 18.3 points and 9.5 rebounds per game this season. Another name to keep an eye on will be 6'5 junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1055794' first='Jordan' last='Tillery'] who is averaging 14.5 points and 7.4 rebounds per game this season for the Pioneers. On the other side, the Tampa Catholic Crusaders (9-8) will also look to bounce back into the win column after suffering a 84-81 overtime loss to Victory Christian Academy in the Ocala Forest MLK Classic. Keep an eye on 6'6 junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1055791' first='Karter' last='Knox'] in this matchup as he's averaging 21.6 points and 10.2 rebounds per game this season for the Crusaders. Another name to keep an eye on will be 6'3 senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='962519' first='Eddrin' last='Bronson'] who is averaging 16.5 points and 3.9 rebounds per game this season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Riviera Prep at Mater Lakes Academy- Wednesday at 7:30pm:</strong> We have a Top 10 matchup in all classifications featuring the Riviera Prep Bulldogs (14-3) who come in ranked No. 9 in the latest MaxPreps' rankings. On the other side we have the Mater Lakes Academy Bears (17-3) who come in ranked No. 8 in the state across all classifications. Keep an eye on 6'4 sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id='1301788' first='Dante' last='Allen'] who is averaging 24.3 points and 7.4 rebounds per game this season for the Bulldogs. Also keep an eye on 6'3 senior guard Cooper Josefsburg who is averaging 11.8 points and 3.5 rebounds per game this season. On the other side, the Mater Lakes Academy Bears come into this game on a modest 2-game winning streak, including a 84-77 win over Top-5 ranked Winter Haven on Monday at the "MLK Dream is Real" Classic in Orlando. Keep an eye on 6'5 junior small forward [player_tooltip player_id='1055719' first='Christian' last='Reid'] and 6'0 sophomore point guard [player_tooltip player_id='1301710' first='Anthony' last='Knowles'] in this matchup for Mater Lakes Academy.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Columbus (Miami) at IMG Academy- Friday at 7:30pm: </strong>Think we can all agree this is the matchup of the week right? Two Top 10 nationally ranked teams will be on display as Day 1 of the annual Ascender Classic wraps up as the No. 10 ranked Columbus Explorers who are led by 6'5 sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id='1301715' first='Cayden' last='Boozer'] and 6'9 sophomore power forward [player_tooltip player_id='1301714' first='Cameron' last='Boozer'] take on the IMG Academy Ascenders who got a marquee win at the Hoophall Classic taking down AZ Compass Prep. The Ascenders are led by 6'3 senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='957021' first='Jacoi' last='Hutchinson'], who has signed with George Washington and 6'4 senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='992517' first='Blue' last='Cain'] who has signed with Georgia Tech. Also keep an eye on 6'7 sophomore wing [player_tooltip player_id='1240336' first='Amari' last='Allen'] who is known to finish well at the rim as well as rim protect for the Ascenders. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->