Preview: Union Mine Diamondbacks vs. Bradshaw Christian The Pride
Union Mine is 10-0 against the The Pride since January of 2020, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The Union Mine Diamondbacks will stay at home for another game and welcome the Bradshaw Christian The Pride at 7:00 p.m. on February 2nd. Union Mine has been dominant on offense recently, as they've racked up an incredible 1,969 points over their last 26 games.
Even though El Dorado scored an imposing 81 points on Tuesday, Union Mine still came out on top. Union Mine snuck past the Cougars with a 87-81 win. Given Union Mine's advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 186th, while the Cougars are ranked 664th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Union Mine got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Nate Sweet out in front who scored 36 points along with two steals. Sweet hasn't dropped below 22 points for five straight games. Another player making a difference was Ethan Gines, who dropped a double-double on 21 points and ten assists.
Meanwhile, it may have taken overtime to finish the job, but Bradshaw Christian ultimately got the result they hoped for on Tuesday. They secured a 76-72 W over Rosemont. The win was nothing new for Bradshaw Christian as they're now sitting on three straight.
It was another big night for Josh O'neal, who dropped a double-double on 27 points and 12 rebounds. He hasn't dropped below eight rebounds for three straight games. The team also got some help courtesy of Caleb Carson, who scored ten points along with seven rebounds and two steals.
Union Mine pushed their record up to 24-2 with that win, which was their 19th straight at home dating back to last season. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 79.8 points per game. As for Bradshaw Christian, their win bumped their record up to 15-11.
Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as Union Mine and the The Pride are some of the highest scoring teams in the league. Union Mine hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 75.5 points per game. However, it's not like Bradshaw Christian struggles in that department as they've been averaging 60.8 points per game. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can run the score up higher.
Union Mine didn't have too much breathing room in their contest against the The Pride in their previous meeting back in January, but they still walked away with a 76-70 win. Will Union Mine repeat their success, or do the The Pride have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
