The Stern Titans will head out on the road to face off against the Animo De La Hoya Boxers at 3:30 p.m. on Monday. Stern will be strutting in after a victory while Animo De La Hoya will be coming in after a loss.
Last Friday, Stern beat Smidt Tech 53-42. Given Stern's advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 400th, while Smidt Tech is ranked 1183rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Stern's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Mark Bautista, who scored 18 points. The contest was Bautista's seventh in a row with at least ten points. Vince Villanueva was another key contributor, scoring 16 points along with 8 rebounds.
Meanwhile, Animo De La Hoya suffered a tough 33-13 loss at the hands of Torres on Thursday. Animo De La Hoya has now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Stern's win was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 7-2. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 66.2 points per game. As for Animo De La Hoya, their loss dropped their record down to 1-8.
Things could have been worse for Stern, but things could have been a whole lot better as they took a 59-42 loss to Animo De La Hoya in their previous meeting back in January. Can Stern avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
