Basketball Recap: Rock Academy Takes Loss Despite Strong Performances from Roland Balderramos and James Whitley

Rock Academy was not able to break out of their rough patch on Thursday as the team picked up their eighth straight loss dating back to last season. They came up short against the Escondido Cougars, falling 66-45. While losing is never fun, the Warriors can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 1014th, while the Cougars are ranked 460th).

Rock Academy's loss came despite strong showings from James Whitley and Roland Balderramos. Whitley went 8 for 14 on his way to 18 points in addition to seven boards and five assists, while Balderramos went 6 of 13 on his way to 15 points and three steals. Those 15 points gave Balderramos a new career-high.

Rock Academy's defeat dropped their record down to 0-6. As for Escondido, the win was the third in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 8-2.

Rock Academy won't have much time to rest: their next matchup is against O'Farrell Charter at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. As for Escondido, a feisty cat fight will be fought when the Escondido Cougars challenge the Escondido Charter Tigers at 7:30 p.m. on December 20th.