Basketball Game Preview: Yucaipa Thunderbirds vs. Serrano Diamondbacks

The Yucaipa Thunderbirds and the Serrano Diamondbacks will face off at 3:30 p.m. on Friday without much rest having both just played. One thing working in Yucaipa's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last five matchups.

It was a Battle of the Birds when Yucaipa faced off against Arroyo Valley on Thursday. Yucaipa breezed by Arroyo Valley to the tune of 78-30. Given the Thunderbirds' advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 226th, while the Hawks are ranked 1208th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Yucaipa to victory, but perhaps none more so than Malik Young, who posted 14 points and four steals. Van Johnson was another key player, going 7 of 8 on his way to 17 points.

Yucaipa smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive rebounds. That's the most offensive boards they've managed all season.

Meanwhile, Serrano posted their closest victory since January 24th on Thursday. They skirted past Banning 66-64.

Yucaipa is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last eight contests, which provided a nice bump to their 10-3 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 68.5 points per game. As for Serrano, they now have a winning record of 5-4.

Yucaipa beat Serrano 66-56 in their previous matchup back in December of 2019. Will Yucaipa repeat their success, or does Serrano have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.