Basketball Preview: Maricopa Rams vs. West Point Dragons
Maricopa has enjoyed a two-game homestand but will soon have to dust off their road jerseys. They will square off against the West Point Dragons at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Maricopa will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps Arizona Rankings (they are ranked 216th, while the Dragons are ranked 67th).
Maricopa pushed their score all the way to 65 on Tuesday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They took a 73-65 hit to the loss column at the hands of Cesar Chavez. The loss unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Maricopa in their matchups with the Champions: they've now lost five in a row.
Despite the loss, Maricopa had strong showings from Gary Hoxie, who almost dropped a double-double on 18 points and nine rebounds, and Ruben White, who almost dropped a double-double on 16 points and nine rebounds. It was the first time this season that Hoxie scored 15 or more points. Nate Barlow was another key contributor, scoring 11 points.
Meanwhile, West Point was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap on Tuesday as they fell 58-54 to the Stallions.
Maricopa's loss dropped their record down to 3-19. As for West Point, their loss dropped their record down to 16-6.
Maricopa came up short against the Dragons in their previous matchup two weeks ago, falling 58-51. Can Maricopa avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
