Basketball Game Preview: Palisade Bulldogs vs. Montrose Red Hawks

Palisade is 1-9 against Montrose since December of 2014 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Palisade Bulldogs will be playing at home against the Montrose Red Hawks at 7:00 p.m. Both are strolling into their matches after big wins in their previous games.

Palisade is headed into the game having just posted their biggest win since December 12, 2024 on Friday. Everything went their way against Grand Junction Central as Palisade made off with a 69-45 victory. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Bulldogs.

Palisade relied on the efforts of Hunter Howard, who went 7 of 13 on his way to 17 points in addition to eight boards and five assists, and Carter Hayward, who went 6 for 8 en route to 16 points and three steals. Howard has been hot for a while, having also posted two or more steals the last nine times he's played. Another player making a difference was LJ Ballenger, who posted nine points and three steals.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Montrose, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Friday. They claimed a resounding 59-25 win over Grand Junction Central. The high-flying offensive performance was a huge turnaround for the Red Hawks considering their 28-point performance the contest before.

Palisade's victory was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 9-8. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 61.2 points per game. As for Montrose, their win bumped their record up to 15-4.

Palisade came up short against Montrose in their previous matchup back in January, falling 42-38. Will Palisade have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other basketball content.