Basketball Game Preview: Hoopa Valley Warriors vs. Modoc Braves

The Hoopa Valley Warriors will head out on the road to square off against the Modoc Braves at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Hoopa Valley is headed into the contest after thoroughly thrashing South Fork: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Hoopa Valley blew South Fork out of the water with a 71-29 final score. Given the Warriors' advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 351st, while the Cubs are ranked 887th), the result on Thursday wasn't entirely unexpected.

Ivy Lamebear was her usual excellent self, putting up 29 points. Those 29 points gave her a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Maggie Morris, who posted 12 points.

Meanwhile, you can't lose the game if you win every quarter, and that was precisely Modoc's strategy against Bonanza on Tuesday. Modoc took down Bonanza 49-30.

Modoc's win came from a few key players Hoopa Valley will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Katie Erquiaga, who dropped a double-double on 14 points and 13 rebounds. She has been hot recently, having posted nine or more boards the last four times she's played. Another player making a difference was Jordyn Sandage, who had 15 points and seven steals.

Modoc smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 17 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive rebounds in 13 consecutive games.

Modoc has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won eight of their last nine matches, which provided a nice bump to their 11-6 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 53.9 points per game. As for Hoopa Valley, their record is now 8-6.

Hoopa Valley didn't have too much breathing room in their contest against Modoc in their previous matchup back in December of 2024, but they still walked away with a 50-44 victory. Does Hoopa Valley have another victory up their sleeve, or will Modoc turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.