Basketball Game Preview: Cienega Bobcats vs. Desert View Jaguars

Cienega is 9-1 against Desert View since January of 2015 and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Thursday. A feisty cat fight is on tap when the Cienega Bobcats duke it out with the Desert View Jaguars at 7:00 p.m. Cienega knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past 17 matchups -- so hopefully Desert View likes a good challenge.

Cienega is headed into the contest after thoroughly thrashing Nogales: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Cienega blew Nogales out of the water with an 85-56 final score. The Bobcats pushed the score to 71-43 by the end of the third, a deficit the Apaches had little chance of recovering from.

Cienega can attribute much of their success to Jackson Moore, who went 9 of 12 en route to 22 points and five assists, and Gabe Buksh, who posted 11 points in addition to five assists and four steals. That's the most points Moore has posted since back in November of 2024. Another player making a difference was Kristian DelRio, who scored 15 points.

Cienega smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 12 offensive boards. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 5.5 offensive rebounds per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 games they've averaged 8.3.

Meanwhile, Desert View was not able to break out of their rough patch on Tuesday as the team picked up their fourth straight loss. They took a blow against Pueblo, falling 74-47.

Cienega pushed their record up to 12-5 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 81.7 points per game. As for Desert View, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-15.

Everything came up roses for Cienega against Desert View in their previous matchup back in January of 2024, as the squad secured a 76-36 win. In that matchup, Cienega amassed a halftime lead of 49-12, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Thursday.