Basketball Game Preview: Elbert Bulldogs vs. McClave Cardinals

The Elbert Bulldogs will take on the McClave Cardinals at 12:30 p.m. on Friday.

Elbert is headed into the game out to prove that what happened against Cheyenne Wells on Friday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Elbert lost 43-20 to Cheyenne Wells. While losing is never fun, the Bulldogs can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Colorado basketball rankings (they are ranked 239th, while the Tigers are ranked 111th).

Piper Warren

Rebounds

02/28/25 @ Cheyenne Wells	18
02/27/25 vs Genoa-Hugo/Karval	13
02/24/25 @ Deer Trail	20
02/21/25 vs Denver Waldorf	15
02/20/25 vs Rocky Mountain Lutheran	17

Despite the defeat, Elbert saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Piper Warren posted five points and 18 rebounds. Warren is on a roll when it comes to boards, as she's now pulled down 13 or more in each of the last five games she's played.

Even though they lost, Elbert smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive boards. This was only their third loss (out of ten games) when they hit their own glass that hard.

Meanwhile, McClave had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 20 points) and they went ahead and made it four on Thursday. They really took it to the Panthers for the full four quarters, racking up a 66-23 victory. The Cardinals have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 15 matchups by 28 points or more this season.

McClave's win came from a few key players Elbert will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Zoe Martinez, who shot 50% from the field to rack up 17 points. Ashlynn Steinbrunn was another key player, putting up ten points and six steals.

McClave's win bumped their record up to 21-2. As for Elbert, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 9-14.