Basketball Recap: Jeremy Kirchner's Big Game Can't Quite Lead Nordhoff over Fillmore

Nordhoff came up into this matchup off a tough 27-point defeat last Wednesday. This time they kept things ultra-competitive, but unfortunately the final result was the same. They fell just short of the Fillmore Flashes by a score of 61-59 on Friday. The Rangers' loss continues a trend for the squad, making it four in a row.

Several Rangers players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Jeremy Kirchner, who went 10 of 16 on his way to 22 points. Those 22 points gave Kirchner a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Jonathan Roman, who dropped a double-double on 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Even though they lost, Nordhoff smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 12 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in six consecutive contests.

Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Fillmore to victory, but perhaps none more so than Joey Ocegueda, who dropped a double-double on 11 points and 13 boards. Ocegueda also grabbed five steals, which is notable because Fillmore is 6-3 when he posts at least five steals, but 3-12 otherwise. Ray Curiel was another key player, putting up 14 points in addition to seven rebounds and five steals.

Nordhoff's defeat dropped their record down to 6-16. As for Fillmore, their win ended a three-game drought at home and bumped them up to 9-15.

Nordhoff has already played their next game, a 65-34 loss against Cate on the 25th. As for Fillmore, they also wasted no time getting back out on the court and have already played their next match, an 81-51 defeat against Santa Paula on the 29th.