A feisty cat fight is on tap when the Escondido Cougars challenge the Valley Center Jaguars at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday... Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Escondido fought the good fight in their overtime matchup against Ramona on Friday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell 66-58 to the Bulldogs. The Cougars have struggled against the Bulldogs recently, as the game was their sixth consecutive lost matchup.
Despite their loss, Escondido saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Danny Valadez, who posted 18 points, was perhaps the best of all. The team also got some help courtesy of Nathan James, who had 18 points.
Meanwhile, Valley Center came into Friday's contest having lost three straight, but that streak is now in the rearview. They took their game on Friday with ease, bagging a 74-42 victory over San Pasqual. With the Jaguars ahead 46-19 at the half, the match was all but over already.
Escondido better keep an eye on Lincoln Zetmeir. He was instrumental in Valley Center's win, going 13 of 24 en route to 42 points and six rebounds. That makes it 20 consecutive games in which Zetmeir has scored at least a third of Valley Center's points. Another player making a difference was Dustin Hotchkiss, who went 8 for 14 on his way to 22 points and eight boards.
Escondido's defeat ended a six-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 14-5. As for Valley Center, their win was their first in the league, bumping their league record up to 1-3 and their overall record up to 6-14.
Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as both are some of the highest scoring teams in the league. Escondido hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 58.7 points per game. However, it's not like Valley Center struggles in that department as they've been averaging 57.2 points. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can run the score up higher.
Escondido might still be hurting after the 65-43 loss they got from Valley Center in their previous matchup back in January of 2024. Can Escondido avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
