Basketball Game Preview: Alisal Trojans vs. Carmel Padres

Alisal hasn't had much luck against Carmel recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Alisal Trojans will head out to square off against the Carmel Padres at 7:00 p.m. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.

Alisal will head into Wednesday's game on the come-up: they were handed a heart-breaking two-point defeat in their last match, but they sure didn't let that happen against Salinas on Wednesday. Alisal claimed a resounding 78-47 win over Salinas. The Trojans have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won seven contests by 21 points or more this season.

Alisal's success was spearheaded by the efforts of Misael Palafox, who dropped a triple-double on 23 points, ten rebounds, and ten assists, and Kike Jacinto, who dropped a double-double on 18 points and 11 boards. What's more, Jacinto also racked up four steals, the most he's had since back in February of 2024. Another player making a difference was Christian Lopez, who posted 12 points and seven boards.

Meanwhile, Carmel entered their tilt with Monterey on Wednesday with two consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with three. They came out on top against the Dores by a score of 62-54.

Carmel is also on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six matches, which provided a nice bump to their 7-5 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 58.8 points per game. As for Alisal, their victory bumped their record up to 11-3.

Alisal came up short against Carmel when the teams last played back in January of 2023, falling 62-54. Can Alisal avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.