Basketball Game Preview: Buckeye Hawks vs. Sierra Linda Bulldogs

After both having extra time off, the Buckeye Hawks and the Sierra Linda Bulldogs will dust off their jerseys to face off against one another at 1:00 p.m. on Thursday. The squads are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Buckeye has struggled recently with four losses in a row, while Sierra Linda will arrive with three straight wins.

Buckeye saw some tournament action last Saturday. They took a 51-41 hit to the loss column at the hands of Paramount.

Defeat or not, Buckeye got some senior leadership from Amayah Leyva and Kiria Avila Escarcega. Leyva went 6 of 13 en route to 15 points, while Avila Escarcega posted 14 points and eight rebounds. Those 14 points set a new season-high mark for Avila Escarcega.

Meanwhile, Sierra Linda was able to grind out a solid victory over Copper Canyon two weeks ago, taking the game 38-31.

Sierra Linda had a senior duo take command as Mariana Mathis put up 13 points and Aymee Medina dropped a double-double on 12 points and ten rebounds. That makes it three consecutive games in which Mathis has scored at least a third of Sierra Linda's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Sophya Goire, who posted seven points.

Sierra Linda now has a winning record of 4-3. As for Buckeye, they now have a losing record at 4-5.

Buckeye came up short against Sierra Linda in their previous matchup back in February of 2016, falling 43-38. Can Buckeye avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.