Basketball Game Preview: Sacramento Dragons vs. Fortune Early College Panthers

Two dominant guards in La Ne Dunn and Heaven Graves are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Sacramento Dragons will take on the Fortune Early College Panthers at 6:30 p.m. on Friday.

Sacramento is probably headed into the game with a chip on their shoulder considering Vanden just ended the team's three-game winning streak on Tuesday. They were dealt a 90-38 defeat at the hands of the Vikings. While losing is never fun, the Dragons can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 382nd, while the Vikings are ranked 118th).

Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the best came from Dunn, who dropped a double-double on 12 points and 11 boards. She has been hot for a while, having posted eight or more rebounds the last 17 times she's played. Bianca Clark was another key player, putting up nine points and seven boards.

Meanwhile, Fortune Early College entered their tilt with Esparto on Thursday with two consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with three. They really took it to the Spartans for the full four quarters, racking up a 48-13 victory. The Panthers pushed the score to 39-13 by the end of the third, a deficit the Spartans had little chance of recovering from.

Sacramento better keep an eye on Tenya Bailey. She was instrumental in Fortune Early College's win, posting 16 points. What's more, Bailey also racked up four assists, the most she's had since back in December of 2023. Another player making a difference was Omiia Stearne, who almost dropped a double-double on nine points and 15 rebounds.

Fortune Early College's win was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 12-8. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 50.2 points per game. As for Sacramento, their loss dropped their record down to 17-8.

Sacramento didn't have too much breathing room in their match against Fortune Early College when the teams last played back in January of 2024, but they still walked away with a 53-47 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Sacramento since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.