Basketball Game Preview: Palm Desert Aztecs vs. Indio Rajahs

Palm Desert and Indio are an even 5-5 against one another since January of 2016, but not for long. The Palm Desert Aztecs will square off against the Indio Rajahs at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Palm Desert has three straight wins, Indio has three straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the court.

Last Thursday, Palm Desert took their match with ease, bagging a 56-16 victory over Redlands. The contest marked the Aztecs' most dominant win of the season so far.

Palm Desert found their leader in sophomore Katelyn Gallagher, who dropped a double-double on 16 points and ten steals. Gallagher has been hot for a while, having posted two or more steals the last 28 times she's played. Ava Tethal was another key player, putting up 12 points along with five assists and five boards.

Meanwhile, Indio came up short against Tahquitz on Thursday, falling 57-36.

Indio's loss dropped their record down to 1-4. As for Palm Desert, their victory bumped their record up to 4-2.

Palm Desert came up short against Indio when the teams last played back in January of 2022, falling 37-28. Can Palm Desert avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.