Basketball Game Preview: Smith Valley Bulldogs vs. Pyramid Lake Lakers

Having just played yesterday, the Smith Valley Bulldogs will jump right back in to play the Pyramid Lake Lakers at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.

Smith Valley is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Friday. Everything went their way against Virginia City as Smith Valley made off with a 49-27 victory. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Bulldogs.

Meanwhile, Pyramid Lake entered their tilt with Sage Ridge on Thursday with 13 consecutive wins , and they'll enter their next game with 14. They really took it to the Scorpions for the full four quarters, racking up a 74-37 win. Given the Lakers' advantage in MaxPreps' Nevada basketball rankings (they are ranked 15th, while the Scorpions are ranked 65th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Smith Valley better focus on containing Lorena Eben and Kaitlin Mandell as the pair were huge in Pyramid Lake's win. Eben went 11-for-14 on her way to 28 points and eight steals, while Mandell went 9-for-18 to rack up 24 points in addition to six boards and five steals. Thanks to that strong game, Eben now owns an excellent 45.8% shooting accuracy. Chylie Querta was another key player, putting up seven points and three steals.

Pyramid Lake smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive boards in three consecutive matches.

Pyramid Lake's victory was their 16th straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 23-5. Those victories came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 24.3 points over those games. As for Smith Valley, their record is now 16-7.

Smith Valley took a serious blow against Pyramid Lake when the teams last played last Thursday, falling 73-25. Can Smith Valley avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.