Basketball Game Preview: Forest Lake Christian Falcons vs. Encina Bulldogs

The Forest Lake Christian Falcons will challenge the Encina Bulldogs at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both have had a bumpy ride up to this point with seven consecutive losses for Forest Lake Christian and four for Encina.

Last Tuesday, Forest Lake Christian came up short against Victory Christian and fell 65-56.

Despite the loss, Forest Lake Christian saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Brendan Hooper went 8 for 16 on his way to 16 points in addition to six rebounds and six steals. The matchup was Hooper's seventh in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Hezekiah Schneider, who went 6 of 12 on his way to 14 points.

Meanwhile, Encina played a tough contest on Tuesday in which they were outscored in every quarter. They were outmatched by Sacramento Waldorf and fell 51-13. The Bulldogs were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 29-8.

Encina's defeat dropped their record down to 2-7. As for Forest Lake Christian, their loss dropped their record down to 3-8.

Forest Lake Christian was taken down by Encina 100-37 when the teams last played back in February of 2024. That game was all but decided by halftime, at which point Forest Lake Christian was down 49-17.