The Basha Bears will take on the Apollo Hawks at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Basha took a loss when they played away from home last Tuesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed last Wednesday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Corona del Sol 77-30. With the Bears ahead 53-12 at the half, the game was all but over already.
Grace Beckler
| 02/12/25 vs Corona del Sol | 100% |
| 02/11/25 @ Casteel | 50% |
| 02/07/25 @ Chandler | 62% |
| 02/06/25 vs Chandler | 58% |
Basha's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Grace Beckler, who made all 6 shots she took to post 13 points along with six boards and four steals. Beckler is also on a roll when it comes to shooting accuracy, as she's posted one of at least 50% in the last four games she's played. Another player making a difference was Rylie Sword, who posted 14 points and four steals.
Basha smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 15 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in eight consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, Apollo had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 23 points) and they went ahead and made it three last Wednesday. They claimed a resounding 59-21 victory over the Spartans. Given the Hawks' advantage in MaxPreps' Arizona basketball rankings (they are ranked 108th, while the Spartans are ranked 264th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Basha better keep an eye on Meliyah Morning. She was instrumental in Apollo's win, going 9-for-19 en route to 20 points and seven steals. Morning has become a key player for Apollo: the team is undefeated when she posts at least five steals, but 4-8 otherwise. The team also got some help courtesy of Tamiya Gilliam, who earned five points in addition to eight rebounds and six steals.
Apollo pushed their record up to 10-8 with the win, which was their fifth straight at home. Those victories came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 26.4 points over those games. As for Basha, they have been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four contests, which provided a nice bump to their 14-12 record this season.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Basha has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 37.2 boards per game. However, it's not like Apollo struggles in that department as they've been averaging 25.1 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other basketball content.
