Preview: Rock Canyon Jaguars vs. ThunderRidge Grizzlies
Two dominant guards in Macoy Terry and Charlie Spann are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Rock Canyon Jaguars will head out on the road to face off against the ThunderRidge Grizzlies at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Rock Canyon comes in on six and ThunderRidge on 12.
Last Tuesday, Rock Canyon's game was all tied up 25-25 at the half, but luckily for them it didn't stay that way. They managed a 50-45 win over Legend. Given Rock Canyon's advantage in MaxPreps' Colorado basketball rankings (they are ranked sixth, while Legend is ranked 51st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Terry continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, scoring 19 points along with five rebounds and two steals. He is on a roll when it comes to points, as he's now scored 15 or more in the last five games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Nolan Kliewer, who scored 11 points along with seven rebounds and two steals.
Meanwhile, a well-balanced attack led ThunderRidge over Heritage in every quarter on their way to victory on Tuesday. ThunderRidge enjoyed a cozy 59-40 win over Heritage. Winning is a bit easier when you outrebound your opponent 12 to 4 on the offensive boards, as ThunderRidge did.
ThunderRidge's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Spann led the charge by scoring 19 points along with two steals. Spann has been hot recently, having posted 15 or more points the last nine times he's played. Tommy Wight was another key contributor, scoring 15 points along with five rebounds and two steals.
Rock Canyon pushed their record up to 13-3 with that win, which was their third straight on the road. ThunderRidge's record now sits at 15-2.
Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as the two teams are some of the highest scoring teams in the league. Rock Canyon hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 64.2 points per game. However, it's not like ThunderRidge struggles in that department as they've been averaging 63.4 points per game. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can run the score up higher.
Rock Canyon took their victory against ThunderRidge in their previous meeting back in January of 2023 by a conclusive 80-60. The rematch might be a little tougher for Rock Canyon since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
