Basketball Game Preview: Smith Valley Bulldogs vs. Sierra Lutheran Falcons

The Smith Valley Bulldogs and the Sierra Lutheran Falcons will compete for holiday cheer at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Given that the two teams suffered a loss in their last games, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this matchup.

Smith Valley is headed into the contest out to prove that what happened against Eureka on Saturday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Smith Valley was beaten by Eureka 56-20. While losing is never fun, the Bulldogs can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Nevada basketball rankings (they are ranked 40th, while the Vandals are ranked fourth).

Meanwhile, Sierra Lutheran didn't have quite enough to beat Oasis Academy on Monday and fell 28-26.

Smith Valley's defeat dropped their record down to 5-4. As for Sierra Lutheran, their loss was their fifth straight on the road dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 0-2.

Smith Valley couldn't quite finish off Sierra Lutheran in their previous meeting back in February of 2023 and fell 40-38. Can Smith Valley avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.