Basketball Preview: Gates Chili Spartans vs. Vertus Warriors
Two dominant guards in Joey Vigerzi and Talhah Ali are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Gates Chili Spartans are on the road again on Monday and plays the Vertus Warriors at 6:00 p.m. on February 5th. Both teams took a loss in their last game, so they'll have plenty of motivation to get the 'W'.
Last Friday, Gates Chili suffered a rough 70-46 loss at the hands of the Eagles. The loss unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Gates Chili in their matchups with the Eagles: they've now lost six in a row.
Despite the defeat, Gates Chili saw an underclassman step up: Vigerzi scored 21 points along with six rebounds and two steals. Vigerzi has been hot recently, having posted 20 or more points the last four times he's played. Jaden Robinson was another key contributor, scoring four points along with eight rebounds and two steals.
Meanwhile, Vertus' recent rough patch got a bit rougher last Thursday after their fourth straight defeat. They lost to Monroe at home by a decisive 74-56 margin. While losing is never fun, Vertus can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' New York basketball rankings (they are ranked 541st, while the Red Jackets are ranked 144th).
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the best came from Reginald Pough, who scored eight points along with 12 rebounds and two steals. He is on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed two or more in the last three games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Na'shon Wade, who dropped a double-double on 14 points and 13 rebounds.
Gates Chili dropped their record down to 4-12 with that defeat, which was their 15th straight on the road dating back to last season. As for Vertus, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost seven of their last eight matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 4-11 record this season.
Keep an eye on the arc in Monday's game: Gates Chili have been dynamite from deep this season, having made 38.6% of their threes per game. It's a different story for Vertus, though, as they've only made 24.4% of their threes this season. Given Gates Chili's sizable advantage in that area, the Warriors will need to find a way to close that gap.
Gates Chili skirted past the Warriors 61-59 in their previous meeting back in January. The rematch might be a little tougher for Gates Chili since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
