Basketball Game Preview: Corning Cardinals vs. Red Bluff Spartans

The Corning Cardinals are taking a road trip to take on the Red Bluff Spartans at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.

Corning is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They took their match on Friday with ease, bagging a 68-31 victory over Live Oak. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Cardinals.

It was another big night for Jeff Mendros, who dropped a double-double with 15 points and 11 assists. What's more, he also posted three steals, the most he's had since back in December of 2024. Another player making a difference was Brody Martinovich, who went 5-for-11 on his way to 13 points and three steals.

Meanwhile, Red Bluff earned a 58-46 win over Shasta on Friday. The Spartans have beaten the Wolves the last three times they've met, but they better watch out: this was the closest the Wolves has come to flipping the script.

Red Bluff pushed their record up to 16-11 with the victory, which was their third straight on the road. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 58.3 points over those games. As for Corning, their win bumped their record up to 14-12.

Things could have been worse for Corning, but things could have been a whole lot better as they took a 58-41 loss to Red Bluff when the teams last played back in December of 2024. Can Corning avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.