Basketball Game Preview: Aquinas Falcons vs. Notre Dame Titans

Aquinas is 9-1 against Notre Dame since January of 2015 and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Monday. The Aquinas Falcons will be playing at home against the Notre Dame Titans at 6:00 p.m. The squads are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Aquinas has struggled recently with three defeats in a row, while Notre Dame will arrive with four straight victories.

Aquinas' tournament run continued when they took on Temecula Valley on Monday. Aquinas came up short against Temecula Valley, falling 55-29. While losing is never fun, the Falcons can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 927th, while the Golden Bears are ranked 308th).

Jordyn Williams

Rebounds

12/30/24 vs Temecula Valley	11
12/28/24 vs Fontana	12
12/27/24 @ Valley View	9
12/26/24 vs JW North	14
12/13/24 @ Indian Springs	13

The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Jordyn Williams, who posted two points along with 11 boards and three blocks. She has been hot for a while, having posted nine or more boards the last nine times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Vanessa Lear, who put up four points and 12 rebounds.

Even though they lost, Aquinas smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 12 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive rebounds in five consecutive contests.

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Notre Dame). Everything went their way against Packinghouse Christian Academy back in December of 2024 as Notre Dame made off with a 63-42 win. The Titans have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won four matchups by 20 points or more this season.

Notre Dame's victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 7-3. Those victories came thanks to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 27.7 points per game. As for Aquinas, their loss dropped their record down to 6-11.

Everything came up roses for Aquinas against Notre Dame when the teams last played back in November of 2023, as the team secured a 78-23 win. In that game, Aquinas amassed a halftime lead of 45-8, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Monday.