Basketball Recap: Clovis North Proves Higher State Rank Is No Mistake

Clovis North hadn't done well against Clovis West recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. The Clovis North Broncos walked away with a 64-55 victory over the Clovis West Golden Eagles. Given the Broncos' advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 20th, while the Golden Eagles are ranked 123rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Jace Kellogg and Dj Stickman certainly did their best on Friday to avoid the loss. Kellogg went 8 of 20 en route to 22 points and six boards, while Stickman dropped a double-double on 14 points and 16 rebounds. Those 16 rebounds gave Stickman a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Michael Espinoza, who posted eight points and eight boards.

Clovis North has been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six contests, which provided a nice bump to their 18-5 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 72.8 points per game. As for Clovis West, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost three of their last four matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 10-14 record this season.

Clovis North and Vanden will face off at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday without much rest having both just played. Vanden knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past nine games -- so hopefully Clovis North likes a good challenge. As for Clovis West, they will square off against Central at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday.