Preview: Eagle Ridge Academy Warriors vs. DSST: Green Valley Ranch Raptors
The Eagle Ridge Academy Warriors will head out on the road to face off against the DSST: Green Valley Ranch Raptors at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Hopefully Eagle Ridge Academy focused on turnovers this week since the team gave up 17 on Tuesday.
Eagle Ridge Academy's 21-6 record from last season is now well into the rear view mirror after another tough outing. They took a serious blow against Resurrection Christian, falling 79-39. Eagle Ridge Academy was in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 42-21.
Despite the loss, Eagle Ridge Academy saw an underclassman step up: Aiden Wanrow scored 20 points along with 7 rebounds. Wanrow is absolutely dominating the block category: he's posted at least two every time he's taken the court this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Jackson Pendleton, who scored 7 points.
Meanwhile, DSST: Green Valley Ranch waltzed into Tuesday's contest with two straight wins but they left with three. They claimed a resounding 77-35 win over Regis Groff at home. Fans of DSST: Green Valley Ranch have seen this all before: every one of the games they've played this season ended as a blowout.
Jovonnie Babineaux went supernova for DSST: Green Valley Ranch, scoring 28 points along with 5 assists. That makes it three consecutive games in which Babineaux has scored at least 25% of DSST: Green Valley Ranch's points. Another player making a difference was Skyyaire Russell, who scored 12 points along with 3 steals.
This is the second loss in a row for Eagle Ridge Academy and nudges their season record down to 1-2. As for DSST: Green Valley Ranch, their victory bumped their record up to 3-0.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Eagle Ridge Academy have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 27.3 rebounds per game. However, it's not like DSST: Green Valley Ranch struggles in that department as they've been averaging 24.3 per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out. Come back here after the game to get analysis of the match and other basketball content.
Eagle Ridge Academy was able to grind out a solid victory over DSST: Green Valley Ranch in their previous meeting back in December of 2022, winning 74-65. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was DSST: Green Valley Ranch's Asher Sikle, who scored 19 points along with 5 assists. Now that he won't be playing on Thursday, will it be that much easier for Eagle Ridge Academy to walk away with another win? There's only one way to find out.
