Preview: Turlock Christian Eagles vs. Foresthill Wildfires
Turlock Christian has enjoyed the comforts of home their last five games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will take on the Foresthill Wildfires at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Turlock Christian has been dominant on offense recently, as they've racked up an incredible 183 points over their last three matches.
Turlock Christian pushed their score all the way to 70 on Thursday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They took a 84-70 bruising from Big Valley Christian. Despite running the score up even higher than they did in their prior game on Tuesday (55), Turlock Christian still had to take the loss.
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Raphael Babba, who scored 18 points along with eight rebounds. Another player making a difference was Ben Bylsma, who scored 19 points.
Turlock Christian struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only four offensive rebounds. They were crushed by their opponents in that department as Big Valley Christian pulled down 20 offensive rebounds.
Meanwhile, after a string of three wins, Foresthill's good fortune finally ran out on Friday. They fell just short of Woodland Christian by a score of 48-46. The loss unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Foresthill in their matchups with Woodland Christian: they've now lost four in a row.
The losing side was boosted by Ben Mercado, who scored 25 points along with five rebounds and two steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points he has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of Hunter Byrum, who scored six points along with three steals.
Turlock Christian has not been sharp recently as the team has lost six of their last seven contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 6-17 record this season. As for Foresthill, their defeat ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 14-14.
Thursday's match will pit two of the most dominant guards against one another: Bylsma and Mercado. Bylsma has been dynamite this season: he has averaged 16.2 points and 2.5 rebounds. For his part, Mercado has averaged 11.8 points, 2 steals, and 4.4 assists.
Turlock Christian strolled past Foresthill when the teams last played back in February of 2022 by a score of 75-61. Will Turlock Christian repeat their success, or does Foresthill have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
