Basketball Recap: Maxwell Takes Loss Despite Strong Efforts from Joaquin Vega and Jesse Reyes

Maxwell was not able to break out of their rough patch on Tuesday as the team picked up their sixth straight defeat. The contest between the Maxwell Wildcats and the Southwest Roughriders didn't end well, with the Maxwell Wildcats falling 60-46. The result was an unpleasant reminder to the Wildcats of the 64-47 loss they experienced in the pair's previous head-to-head fixture back in February of 2015.

Joaquin Vega

Rebounds

01/21/25 @ Brady	9
02/25/25 vs Southwest	8
01/14/25 vs Maywood/Hayes Center	8
12/28/24 vs Brady	8
02/21/25 @ Loomis	7
+ 17 more games

Jesse Reyes and Joaquin Vega certainly did their best on Tuesday to avoid the loss. Reyes almost dropped a double-double with 16 points and nine boards, while Vega went 5-for-9 to rack up 15 points in addition to eight rebounds and three steals. Maxwell is 3-1 when Vega posts eight or more rebounds, but 2-17 otherwise. Another player making a difference was Owen Pagel, who posted four points.

Even though they lost, Maxwell was working as a unit and finished the game with 14 assists. That's the most assists they've posted since back in December of 2024.

Southwest was led to victory by Houston Billeter and Deric Kelley. Billeter dropped a double-double with 24 points and 13 boards, while Kelley dropped a double-double with 19 points and 15 rebounds. That makes it 18 consecutive games in which Billeter has scored at least a third of Southwest's points. Jacob Barber was another key player, putting up eight points and five steals.

Maxwell's defeat dropped their record down to 5-18. As for Southwest, the win (which was their third in a row) raised their record to 10-12.

Maxwell does not have any more games scheduled as of now. As for Southwest, they will square off against Medicine Valley at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. Southwest is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 50.4 points per game this season.