Basketball Game Preview: Piedra Vista Panthers vs. Cleveland Storm

The Piedra Vista Panthers will head out to face off against the Cleveland Storm at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. Piedra Vista is coming into the contest on a three-game losing streak.

Last Thursday, Piedra Vista came up short against Farmington and fell 53-43.

Meanwhile, Cleveland faced Rio Rancho in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Thursday. Cleveland took a 66-54 hit to the loss column at the hands of Rio Rancho. The loss continues a trend for the Storm in their matchups with the Rams: they've now lost seven in a row.

Piedra Vista will have to keep a close watch on Savannah Madueno and Reagan Westenberger, a pair of players who had a big impact on Cleveland's prior game. Madueno went 5-for-7 to rack up 16 points, while Westenberger posted ten points and seven rebounds. The dominant performance gave Westenberger a new career-high in boards. Erin Winters also deserves some recognition as she posted her first block of the season.

Even though they lost, Cleveland smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive boards in three consecutive matchups.

Cleveland's defeat dropped their record down to 13-13. As for Piedra Vista, their loss dropped their record down to 11-15.

Piedra Vista lost to Cleveland on the road by a decisive 66-50 margin in their previous matchup last Thursday. Can Piedra Vista avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.