Basketball Game Preview: Northridge Grizzlies vs. Berthoud Spartans

The Northridge Grizzlies will take on the Berthoud Spartans at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Northridge is coming into the game on a four-game losing streak.

Northridge is headed into the match out to prove that what happened against Severance on Tuesday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Northridge had to suffer through a 67-21 loss at the hands of Severance. The contest marked the Grizzlies' lowest-scoring game so far this season.

Es Sylvere was Northridge's leading scorer, having posted nine points. Bryson Mena held things down on the boards with four rebounds.

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Berthoud). They simply couldn't be stopped on Tuesday as they easily beat Wellington 90-50. The matchup was pretty much decided by the half, when the score had already reached 43-23.

Northridge better focus on containing Isaac Erickson and Ryan Callies as the pair were huge in Berthoud's win. Erickson went 9 of 14 on his way to 22 points in addition to eight rebounds and five assists, while Callies went 7 for 12 en route to 18 points along with five boards and five steals. Erickson has been hot recently, having also posted two or more steals the last three times he's played. Weston Peatrowsky was another key player, putting up 11 points.

Berthoud smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in four consecutive contests.

Berthoud's win bumped their record up to 4-9. As for Northridge, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-10.

Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Northridge has been crashing the rebounds this season, having averaged 23 boards per game. However, it's not like Berthoud struggles in that department as they've been averaging 29.1 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.

Northridge and Berthoud were neck-and-neck in their previous meeting back in December of 2023, but Northridge came up empty-handed after a 60-59 loss. Thankfully for Northridge, Reece Stratmeyer (who dropped a double-double on 24 points and ten rebounds) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.