Basketball Game Preview: Dakota Ridge Eagles vs. Standley Lake Gators

Two dominant guards in Ethan Berninger and Derrek Sims are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Dakota Ridge Eagles will square off against the Standley Lake Gators at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Both teams are coming into the match red-hot, with Dakota Ridge sitting on five straight wins and Standley Lake on three.

Dakota Ridge is headed into the game after thoroughly thrashing Conifer: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Dakota Ridge blew Conifer out of the water with an 86-27 final score. That looming 86-27 mark stands out as the most commanding margin for the Eagles yet this season.

Meanwhile, it may have taken overtime to finish the job, but Standley Lake ultimately got the result they hoped for on Friday. They walked away with a 65-58 victory over Green Mountain.

Standley Lake's win came from a few key players Dakota Ridge will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Sims, who went 11 of 19 on his way to 25 points and five boards. That's the most points he has posted since back in January of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Asher Serlen, who posted 20 points and five rebounds.

Standley Lake was working as a unit and finished the game with 21 assists. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now racked up at least 21 assists in three consecutive contests.

Standley Lake's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 10-4. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 70.3 points per game. As for Dakota Ridge, their victory bumped their record up to 9-5.

Everything came up roses for Dakota Ridge against Standley Lake in their previous meeting back in January of 2024, as the squad secured a 69-38 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Dakota Ridge since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.