Basketball Game Preview: Coronado Thunderbirds vs. Montwood Rams

The Coronado Thunderbirds will head out to challenge the Montwood Rams at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are coming into the game red-hot, with Coronado sitting on three straight victories and Montwood on eight.

Coronado will bounce into Friday's contest after beating Bel Air, who they had gone 0-3 against in their three prior meetings. Everything went Coronado's way against Bel Air on Friday as Coronado made off with a 53-32 win. Given the Thunderbirds' advantage in MaxPreps' Texas basketball rankings (they are ranked 168th, while the Highlanders are ranked 789th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Coronado to victory, but perhaps none more so than Cason Golding, who made all 6 shots he took racking up 15 points and five rebounds. That's the most points Golding has posted since back in November of 2023. Jazhiel Herrera was another key player, putting up eight points along with six assists and three steals.

Coronado smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in six consecutive matches.

Meanwhile, Montwood earned a 48-40 victory over Pebble Hills on Tuesday. That's two games straight that the Rams have won by exactly eight points.

Montwood's win was their eighth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 17-3. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 53.1 points per game. As for Coronado, their record is now 11-4.

Coronado came up short against Montwood in their previous meeting back in February, falling 45-34. Can Coronado avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.