Basketball Game Preview: Woodland Wolves vs. Natomas Nighthawks

The Woodland Wolves will head out to challenge the Natomas Nighthawks at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Woodland has a tough task ahead: they'll enter the matchup with three straight losses, while Natomas will come in with six straight wins.

Woodland is headed into the game out to prove that what happened against Casa Roble on Tuesday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Woodland had to suffer through a 105-45 loss at the hands of Casa Roble. While losing is never fun, the Wolves can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 1011th, while the Rams are ranked 239th).

Meanwhile, Natomas was fully in charge on Friday, breezing past Dixon 79-36. The Nighthawks have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won eight contests by 20 points or more this season.

Natomas found their leader in sophomore Aeron Wallace, who went 8 of 14 on his way to 24 points and five rebounds. That's the most points Wallace has posted since back in December of 2024. Another player making a difference was Diego Villanueva, who went 6 for 8 en route to 17 points.

Natomas smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in 15 consecutive matches.

Natomas pushed their record up to 18-6 with the victory, which was their seventh straight at home. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 76.1 points per game. As for Woodland, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-13.

Woodland took a serious blow against Natomas when the teams last played back in January, falling 71-40. Can Woodland avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.