Preview: Grant Pacers vs. River City Raiders
Grant is 10-0 against River City since January of 2019, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The Grant Pacers will head out on the road to challenge the River City Raiders at 7:00 p.m. Grant will be strutting in after a win while River City will be coming in after a loss.
Grant stacked an eighth blowout win onto their ever-increasing hoard on Tuesday. They claimed a resounding 81-45 win over Laguna Creek at home. Given Grant's advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 125th, while Laguna Creek is ranked 853rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Grant's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Samaya Dillard, who dropped a double-double on 19 points and 15 rebounds. Dillard hasn't dropped below eight rebounds for six straight games. Nerissa Hamilton was another key contributor, scoring 16 points along with five rebounds and four steals.
River City suffered their biggest loss since November 30, 2023 on Tuesday. They were outmatched by Monterey Trail on the road and fell 70-39. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest defeat River City has suffered against Monterey Trail since December 13, 2019.
Grant's win was their ninth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 18-4. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 62.9 points per game. As for River City, they have been struggling recently, as they've lost six of their last eight contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 11-11 record this season.
Everything came up roses for Grant against River City when the teams last played on January 5th as the team secured a 73-33 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Grant since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
