Preview: Verdugo Hills Dons vs. Grant Lancers
The Verdugo Hills Dons and the Grant Lancers will face off at 5:30 p.m. on January 22nd without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. Hopefully Verdugo Hills focused on turnovers this week since the team gave up 16 on Friday.
Verdugo Hills unfortunately witnessed the end of their four-game winning streak. They wound up with the same score they had in their last game (62-35), but sadly the team found themselves on the wrong side of the score this time. They have not had much luck with Trinity Classical Academy recently, as the team's come up short the last three times they've met.
Despite the defeat, Verdugo Hills saw an underclassman step up: Amiyya Castanos scored 14 points along with seven steals. Castanos hasn't dropped below two steals for four straight games. Rayleen Castanos was another key contributor, scoring no points along with seven rebounds and five assists.
Meanwhile, things could have been worse for Grant, but they could have been a whole lot better as they took a 48-33 loss to West Ranch on Saturday. While losing is never fun, Grant can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 807th, while West Ranch is ranked 398th).
Verdugo Hills' record now sits at 12-10. As for Grant, they have not been sharp recently, as they've lost four of their last five matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 8-10 record this season.
Everything came up roses for Verdugo Hills against Grant in their previous matchup on Thursday as the team secured a 62-35 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Verdugo Hills since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
