Basketball Game Preview: Yucaipa Thunderbirds vs. Citrus Valley Blackhawks

The Yucaipa Thunderbirds will take on the Citrus Valley Blackhawks in a holiday battle at at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Yucaipa is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 62.7 points per game this season.

Last Monday, Yucaipa didn't have too much trouble with Summit as they won 66-51. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Thunderbirds.

Yucaipa had a senior duo take command as Jaxon Lerma went 6 for 7 on his way to 15 points and seven assists and Jake Lane went 6 of 8 on his way to 14 points. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Lane has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of Angel Montoya, who posted seven points.

Meanwhile, Citrus Valley was not able to break out of their rough patch on Tuesday as the team picked up their third straight defeat. They might have been a little too into the holiday spirit, gifting Orange Vista an easy 76-52 win. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest loss the Blackhawks have suffered since November 20th.

Yucaipa is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five matches, which provided a nice bump to their 7-3 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 68.0 points per game. As for Citrus Valley, their defeat dropped their record down to 5-5.

Yucaipa beat Citrus Valley 73-61 when the teams last played back in February. Does Yucaipa have another victory up their sleeve, or will Citrus Valley turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.