Basketball Game Preview: Pinole Valley Spartans vs. Saint Mary's Panthers

The Pinole Valley Spartans will head out to challenge the Saint Mary's Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Pinole Valley is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 52.8 points per game this season.

Last Tuesday, Pinole Valley ended up a good deal behind Albany and lost 79-64. While losing is never fun, the Spartans can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 512th, while the Cougars are ranked 184th).

Despite the defeat, Pinole Valley got top-tier performance from Ahmari Otis, who went 7 of 13 on his way to 28 points. Otis' evening made it four games in a row in which he has scored at least ten points. Jaylin Reed was another key player, putting up 16 points in addition to six rebounds and three steals.

Meanwhile, you're bound to get a positive result if you outscore your opponent every quarter, and that's exactly how it played out for Saint Mary's on Tuesday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that they blew Vallejo out of the water with a 77-16 final score. The Panthers have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won eight matchups by 25 points or more this season.

Pinole Valley's loss dropped their record down to 8-12. As for Saint Mary's, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 15-5.

Pinole Valley was dealt a bruising 74-38 defeat at the hands of Saint Mary's when the teams last played back in December of 2024. That contest was all but decided by halftime, at which point Pinole Valley was down 37-15.