Basketball Game Preview: Santa Rosa Panthers vs. Cardinal Newman Cardinals

Santa Rosa is 1-9 against Cardinal Newman since January of 2020 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. A feisty cat fight is on tap when the Santa Rosa Panthers face off against the Cardinal Newman Cardinals at 7:30 p.m.

Santa Rosa lost 52-32 to Montgomery on Wednesday. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest defeat the Panthers have suffered against the Vikings since February 2, 2022.

Meanwhile, Cardinal Newman had already won four in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 20.3 points) and they went ahead and made it five on Wednesday. They blew past the Tigers, posting a 57-27 win. The Cardinals have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won eight matchups by 25 points or more this season.

Santa Rosa's loss ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 12-5. As for Cardinal Newman, they are on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last eight games, which provided a nice bump to their 14-5 record this season.

Santa Rosa lost to Cardinal Newman on the road by a decisive 43-28 margin in their previous matchup back in January of 2024. Can Santa Rosa avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.