Basketball Game Preview: Crest Chargers vs. Huss Huskies

Two dominant guards in Cal Pass Jr. and Jaleel Smith are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Crest Chargers will take on the Huss Huskies in a tournament on Tuesday. One thing working in Crest's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last 18 games.

On Friday, Crest earned a 72-63 win over Kings Mountain.

Meanwhile, Huss fought the good fight in their overtime match against Ashbrook on Friday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They took a 95-89 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Greenwave. The Huskies have struggled against the Greenwave recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive lost matchup.

Crest will have to keep a close watch on Zaiyir 'Zii' Phillips and Smith, a pair of players who had a big impact on Huss' prior game. Phillips went 8-for-18 on his way to 30 points along with five boards and three steals, while Smith posted 26 points in addition to five rebounds and three steals. Smith's evening made it 11 games in a row in which he has scored at least 15 points. Another player making a difference was Antonio Worthy, who went 7-for-13 to rack up 15 points.

Even though they lost, Huss smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 17 offensive boards. That's the most offensive rebounds they've posted since back in February of 2024.

Crest is on a roll lately: they've won ten of their last 11 contests, which provided a nice bump to their 19-2 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 69.4 points over those games. As for Huss, their loss dropped their record down to 15-7.

Crest didn't have too much breathing room in their game against Huss in their previous matchup two weeks ago, but they still walked away with a 65-59 victory. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Smith, who went 11-for-22 en route to 35 points. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Crest still be able to contain Smith? There's only one way to find out.