Basketball Recap: Ryan Shaw's Big Game Can't Quite Lead Centennial over Bakersfield

If Centennial was riding high fresh off their 84-56 takedown of Garces Memorial last Thursday, their most recent game may have dampened their spirits a bit. The Centennial Golden Hawks fell just short of the Bakersfield Drillers by a score of 80-78 on Tuesday. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest loss the Golden Hawks have suffered since November 25, 2023.

Centennial's defeat came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Ryan Shaw, who dropped a double-double on 15 points and 12 boards. The dominant performance gave Shaw a new career-high in rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Rodrick Hodges, who went 7 of 12 en route to 20 points and five assists.

Even though they lost, Centennial smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 18 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 11 offensive boards in eight consecutive contests.

Bakersfield got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Keshawn Black out in front who dropped a double-double on 15 points and 12 boards. Damari Miller was another key player, going 7 for 11 on his way to 18 points and four steals.

Centennial's loss dropped their record down to 12-6. As for Bakersfield, they are on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six games, which provided a nice bump to their 14-6 record this season.

Centennial is taking a road trip to challenge Liberty at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. Centennial knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past eight matchups -- so hopefully Liberty likes a good challenge. As for Bakersfield, they will welcome Bakersfield Christian at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with Bakersfield Christian sitting on three straight wins and Bakersfield on four.