Basketball Game Preview: KIPP Columbus Jaguars vs. Cristo Rey Cougar

The KIPP Columbus Jaguars will square off against the Cristo Rey Cougar at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. Neither of these teams found much success offensively their last time out, scoring well below their season average.

KIPP Columbus is headed into Saturday's contest looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their third straight game on Thursday. They opened the new year with a less-than-successful 36-24 defeat to Patriot Prep Academy.

Meanwhile, Cristo Rey was beaten by Tree of Life Christian 51-18 two weeks ago.

KIPP Columbus will have to keep a close watch on Amani Via and Emelyn Santiago, a pair of players who had a big impact on Cristo Rey's prior game. Via posted eight points, while Santiago had six points and seven rebounds.

Cristo Rey's loss dropped their record down to 2-5. As for KIPP Columbus, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-4.

KIPP Columbus couldn't quite finish off Cristo Rey when the teams last played back in December of 2024 and fell 52-50. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Santiago, who dropped a double-double on 16 points and 13 boards. Now that KIPP Columbus knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.