Basketball Game Preview: Encina Bulldogs vs. Sacramento Waldorf Waves

The Encina Bulldogs will take on the Sacramento Waldorf Waves at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Encina has a tough task ahead: they'll enter the matchup with four straight losses, while Sacramento Waldorf will come in with 15 straight wins.

Encina is headed into the contest out to prove that what happened against Futures on Tuesday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Encina took a blow against Futures, falling 67-37. The Bulldogs were down 65-31 at the end of the third quarter, which was just too much to recover from.

The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Jalani Draper, who posted 13 points and five steals. Another player making a difference was Uziah Griffin, who dropped a double-double on ten points and 11 boards.

Even though they lost, Encina smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 12 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 12 offensive rebounds in seven consecutive games.

Meanwhile, even if it wasn't a dominant performance, Sacramento Waldorf beat Foresthill 39-33 on Tuesday.

Sacramento Waldorf's win came from a few key players Encina will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Liam Aldwinckle, who had 18 points in addition to eight rebounds and three steals. Malachi Miranda was another key player, putting up eight points and 17 boards.

Sacramento Waldorf's victory was their 12th straight at home, which pushed their record up to 20-2. They've dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 30.6 points. As for Encina, their defeat dropped their record down to 4-11.

Encina took a serious blow against Sacramento Waldorf in their previous meeting on January 7th, falling 51-13. That match was all but decided by halftime, at which point Encina was down 29-8.