Basketball Recap: Make It Three in a Row for Sotomayor

Sotomayor had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 28 points) and they went ahead and made it three on Friday. They came out on top against the Stevens Falcons by a score of 61-52. That's more bragging rights for the WILDCATS, who also won the pair's last head-to-head.

Sotomayor had a senior duo take command as Demian Joyner dropped a double-double on 17 points and 12 boards and Jasiah Saunders went 7 of 16 on his way to 24 points and six rebounds. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Joyner has scored all season. Olubunmi Odewole was another key player, putting up four points and eight rebounds.

Sotomayor smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 15 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in nine consecutive games.

Defeat or not, Stevens got some senior leadership from Cesar Roman and Jose Ochoa. Roman went 5 of 9 on his way to 17 points, while Ochoa posted 13 points and six rebounds. What's more, Ochoa also racked up two blocks, the most he's had since back in February. Another player making a difference was Zane Schunior, who had 11 points.

Sotomayor is on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 11-9 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 64.5 points per game. As for Stevens, their loss was their first in the district, dropping their district record down to 3-1 and their overall record down to 10-9.

Sotomayor will get to enjoy the win for a while: their next game is against Taft at 2:30 p.m. on December 31st. Sotomayor is facing Taft at the right time seeing as Taft is stuck on a seven-game losing streak. Stevens will also get a bit of a break before their next contest: they'll face off against Harlan at 1:00 p.m. on December 31st. Harlan knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past three games -- so hopefully Stevens likes a good challenge.