The Tok Wolverines will face off against the Effie Kokrine Charter Warriors on Friday. The teams are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Tok has struggled recently with five losses in a row, while Effie Kokrine Charter will arrive with three straight wins.
Last Saturday, Tok came up short against Nikiski and fell 63-51.
Chairo Espinosa
| 02/15/25 vs Nikiski | 17 |
| 02/14/25 vs Unalaska | 16 |
| 02/13/25 @ Ninilchik | 14 |
| 02/07/25 vs Jimmy Huntington | 10 |
| 02/07/25 vs Non Varsity Tournament Opponent | 9 |
| + 9 more games |
Tok's defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of Chairo Espinosa, who dropped a double-double with 17 points and 12 boards, and Marvin Captain, who posted 22 points along with five rebounds and four steals. Espinosa continues to improve, besting his previous point total in each of the last four games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Lucas Hipp, who scored five points and ten boards.
Even though they lost, Tok smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 18 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in 19 consecutive matchups dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, Effie Kokrine Charter didn't have too much trouble with Fort Yukon on Saturday as they won 74-55. Given the Warriors' advantage in MaxPreps' Alaska basketball rankings (they are ranked 18th, while the Eagles are ranked 82nd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Tok better keep an eye on Jonas Carroll. He was instrumental in Effie Kokrine Charter's win, putting up 21 points. The contest was Carroll's sixth in a row with at least 20 points. Ryan Strom was another key player, posting 14 points.
Effie Kokrine Charter's victory bumped their record up to 14-1. As for Tok, their loss dropped their record down to 4-10.
Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as the two teams are some of the highest-scoring teams around. Tok hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 55.4 points per game. However, it's not like Effie Kokrine Charter struggles in that department as they've been averaging 64.3 points. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can put up more.
Tok might still be hurting after the 72-50 defeat they got from Effie Kokrine Charter in their previous matchup back in January. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Carroll, who posted 30 points. Now that Tok knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
