Preview: DSST: Green Valley Ranch Raptors vs. STEM School Highlands Ranch Spartans
Having just played yesterday, the DSST: Green Valley Ranch Raptors will head out on the road to face off against the STEM School Highlands Ranch Spartans at 6:00 p.m. on February 7th. One thing working in DSST: Green Valley Ranch's favor is that they have posted big point totals in their last five matchups.
Even though Colorado Academy scored an imposing 58 points on Tuesday, DSST: Green Valley Ranch still came out on top. DSST: Green Valley Ranch walked away with a 66-58 victory over Colorado Academy. The victory was all the more spectacular given DSST: Green Valley Ranch's disadvantage in MaxPreps' Colorado basketball rankings (they are ranked 73rd, while Colorado Academy is ranked 14th).
DSST: Green Valley Ranch's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Jovonnie Babineaux, who scored 20 points along with six assists and two steals. Babineaux has been hot recently, having posted 17 or more points the last five times he's played. Shalom Abioye was another key contributor, scoring 20 points along with five rebounds.
Meanwhile, STEM School Highlands Ranch came up short against Alameda on Monday and fell 59-47. STEM School Highlands Ranch has struggled against Alameda recently, as their game on Monday was their fourth consecutive lost matchup.
Despite the loss, STEM School Highlands Ranch got a solid performance out of Avi Thakkar, who scored 16 points along with six steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Tyler Munro, who dropped a double-double on 12 points and ten rebounds.
DSST: Green Valley Ranch's victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 14-4. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 71.0 points per game. As for STEM School Highlands Ranch, they have been struggling recently as they've lost three of their last four games, which put a noticeable dent in their 10-9 record this season.
Keep an eye on the arc in Wednesday's contest: DSST: Green Valley Ranch have been dynamite from deep this season, having made 47.2% of their threes per game. It's a different story for STEM School Highlands Ranch, though, as they've only made 29.2% of their threes this season. Given DSST: Green Valley Ranch's sizable advantage in that area, STEM School Highlands Ranch will need to find a way to close that gap.
Everything came up roses for DSST: Green Valley Ranch against STEM School Highlands Ranch in their previous matchup back in February of 2023 as the team secured a 72-17 win. With DSST: Green Valley Ranch ahead 72-14 at the half, the contest was all but over already.
