Basketball Preview: Helix Highlanders vs. Victory Christian Academy Knights
The Helix Highlanders will take on the Victory Christian Academy Knights at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday. Given that both teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this game.
Helix has been a dominant force so far, but they're in the middle of a mini-slump at the moment. They fell just short of El Capitan by a score of 47-44.
The losing side was boosted by Valerie Marquez, who dropped a double-double on 16 points and 13 rebounds. She hasn't dropped below eight rebounds for eight straight games. Another player making a difference was Michaelle Whyte, who scored 13 points.
Even though they lost, Helix smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 19 offensive rebounds. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as El Capitan only pulled down eight offensive rebounds.
Meanwhile, after a string of six wins, Victory Christian Academy's good fortune finally ran out on Friday. They fell 53-46 to Montgomery. The loss was a bit of a surprise, as Victory Christian Academy came into the contest with a sizable advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 193rd, while the Aztecs are ranked 400th).
Helix's defeat ended a four-game streak of away wins dating back to last season and brought them to 15-6. As for Victory Christian Academy, their loss ended an eight-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 16-6.
Helix didn't have too much breathing room in their matchup against the Knights in their previous meeting back in December of 2022, but they still walked away with a 50-44 win. Will Helix repeat their success, or do the Knights have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
