Basketball Preview: Encina Prep Bulldogs vs. Forest Lake Christian Falcons
The Encina Prep Bulldogs will head out on the road to take on the Forest Lake Christian Falcons at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. One thing working in Encina Prep's favor is that they have posted big point totals in their last 19 contests.
Encina Prep pushed their score all the way to 57 on Friday, but even that wasn't enough to win. Their rough 81-57 loss to Woodland Christian might stick with them for a while. The loss unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Encina Prep in their matchups with the Cardinals: they've now lost five in a row.
Meanwhile, Forest Lake Christian's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Friday after their 19th straight loss. They were the victim of a rough 66-45 loss at the hands of Delta. Forest Lake Christian found out winning isn't easy when you're outrebounded 11 to 4 on offense.
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Brendan Hooper, who scored 19 points along with six rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Hezekiah Schneider, who scored 12 points.
Forest Lake Christian struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only four offensive rebounds. They are winless (0-3) when they can't control their own glass like that.
Encina Prep's defeat ended a six-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 14-6. As for Forest Lake Christian, their defeat was their 11th straight on the road, which dropped their record down to 2-19.
Encina Prep strolled past the Falcons in their previous meeting back in January by a score of 87-70. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Hooper, who scored 21 points along with five assists and two steals. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Encina Prep still be able to contain Hooper? There's only one way to find out.
