Basketball Game Preview: Queen Creek Bulldogs vs. Gilbert Tigers

Queen Creek hasn't had much luck against Gilbert recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Queen Creek Bulldogs will head out on the road to face off against the Gilbert Tigers at 7:00 p.m.

Queen Creek is headed into the contest out to prove that what happened against Highland on Tuesday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Queen Creek took a blow against Highland, falling 54-23. The Bulldogs have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

Despite the defeat, Queen Creek saw an underclassman step up: freshman Amaya Rodgers posted 15 points and three steals. Rodgers' evening made it three games in a row in which she has scored at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Jessenia Attson, who had six points and nine boards.

Even though they lost, Queen Creek smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in three consecutive games.

Meanwhile, Gilbert had already won nine in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 29.2 points) and they went ahead and made it ten on Tuesday. They snuck past the Black Hawks with a 47-41 victory.

Gilbert pushed their record up to 17-6 with the win, which was their 12th straight at home dating back to last season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 61.7 points per game. As for Queen Creek, their loss dropped their record down to 6-18.

Queen Creek was taken down by Gilbert 95-27 when the teams last played back in January. Can Queen Creek avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.