Chico hasn't had much luck against Foothill recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. A feisty cat fight will be fought when the Chico Panthers face off against the Foothill Cougars at 7:30 p.m. Chico knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past four matches -- so hopefully Foothill likes a good challenge.
Last Thursday, Chico was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 69-65 to Placer. While losing is never fun, the Panthers can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 248th, while the Hillmen are ranked 82nd).
| 01/02/25 vs Placer | 9 |
| 12/21/24 vs Whitney | 11 |
| 12/20/24 vs Marysville | 12 |
| 12/19/24 @ Yuba City | 10 |
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the best came from Vincent Boatwright, who almost dropped a double-double on 11 points and nine boards. He has been hot recently, having posted nine or more boards the last four times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Ej Park, who posted 12 points and six rebounds.
Meanwhile, Foothill didn't have too much trouble with Del Campo last Saturday as they won 53-37. The 53-point effort marked Foothill's lowest-scoring contest of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.
Foothill's win came from a few key players Chico will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Matt Poulsen, who went 6 of 14 on his way to 18 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Trace Farrelly, who went 5 of 8 on his way to 12 points and seven rebounds.
Chico's loss dropped their record down to 10-6. As for Foothill, they are on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five games, which provided a nice bump to their 10-5 record this season.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Chico has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 37.3 boards per game. However, it's not like Foothill struggles in that department as they've been averaging 27.2 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Chico ended up a good deal behind Foothill in their previous matchup back in February of 2024, losing 68-53. Will Chico have more luck at home instead of on the road? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other basketball content.
