Basketball Game Preview: Aquinas Falcons vs. JW North Huskies

The Aquinas Falcons and the JW North Huskies will round out the year against one another at at 9:00 a.m. on Thursday. JW North took a loss in their last contest and will be looking to turn the tables on Aquinas, who comes in off a win.

Having struggled with three losses in a row, Aquinas turned things around against Indian Springs last Friday. They came out on top against the COYOTES by a score of 44-36.

Rachelle LoBianco

Points

12/13/24 @ Indian Springs	18
12/02/24 vs Bloomington	16
12/05/24 vs Rancho Verde	8
12/06/24 @ Redlands East Valley	6
12/07/24 vs Yucca Valley	2

Aquinas found their leader in sophomore Rachelle LoBianco, who almost dropped a double-double on 18 points and nine boards. As a matter of fact, that's the most points LoBianco has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of Vanessa Lear, who posted six points and 11 rebounds.

Meanwhile, JW North was not able to break out of their rough patch on Thursday as the team picked up their third straight defeat. They had to suffer through a 56-19 loss at the hands of Rancho Verde.

Aquinas will need focus on slowing down Jazlene Molina, one of several JW North players who made an impact when they last played. She put up eight points and five steals. Aliyah Washington was another key player, putting up four points along with six rebounds and four steals.

Aquinas' win bumped their record up to 5-8. As for JW North, their loss dropped their record down to 2-8.

Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Aquinas has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 31.5 boards per game. However, it's not like JW North struggles in that department as they've been averaging 34.8 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.

Aquinas strolled past JW North when the teams last played back in November by a score of 54-39. Will Aquinas repeat their success, or does JW North have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.