Basketball Recap: Eureka Comes Up Short

After flying high against Del Norte last Thursday, Eureka came back down to earth. The Eureka Loggers fell to the University Prep Panthers 61-57. The Loggers were not able to repeat the success they had when they faced the Panthers earlier this season, when they won 55-52.

Despite the defeat, Eureka saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Xavier De La Rosa almost dropped a double-double on 15 points and nine rebounds. That's the most boards De La Rosa has posted since back in December of 2024. Another player making a difference was Ryder Mitchell, who scored nine points and eight rebounds.

Even though they lost, Eureka was working as a unit and finished the game with 13 assists. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their assist total in three consecutive contests.

Eureka dropped their record down to 16-8 with the loss, which was their third straight on the road. As for University Prep, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won ten of their last 11 matchups, which provided a massive bump to their 17-7 record this season.

Eureka didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next game, a 56-50 win against Fortuna on the 4th. As for University Prep, they also wasted no time getting back out on the court and have already played their next contest, a 74-65 victory against Yreka on the 4th.